Camaz rubbed a hand on his forehead in an attempt to stave off the impending headache. For about four hours non stop since he set foot in the Heart off that damn boat, the group had been giving him a very complete update on what had happened over the past week. He was swiftly ushered into a modest room above a storage building close to the docks.

  It was primarily Ral who had been doing the talking but the rest of the group joined them early on with two other people: Rask and a mysterious man almost completely hidden by clothing. It wasn’t unlike Aris’s choice of clothing except she doesn’t usually bother hiding her face as there were bandages hiding the gemstone eyes. This man was sitting in the corner completely hidden with a hood and gloves, every inch of his body covered with some sort of clothing.

  He had every intention of questioning this stranger’s presence however the story told by Ral took a grim turn when he started talking about the Teverines and their manservant, and how they almost killed Verne in the process. Neither himself nor Yepla had known the Teverines left the island in the first place as they were distracted by the emperor’s arrival. They had used the empty remains of the Red Veil to do their deed and according to Aris, it was the exact coordinates needed to complete a grander enchantment that prompted the huge black line in the sky above the capital.

  Now when they looked up they could see a prominent bulge opening from the middle of the line, giving it the look of a barely opened eye. Aris commented it looked the same from her ‘sight’.

  The Librarian, Yepla, and Gardlo were all there listening. No doubt they would be completely confused by much of the conversation, especially that regarding Aris’s special sight. But the sordid reality was clear as day: the thing that opened above the Heart was the beginning of an enormous Gate. If it opened, it would be very obvious what would happen. A huge swath of the area would succumb to the effects of the Gate and probably prompt a cascade of smaller Gates to open across the empire.

  After the bit about Verne’s parents, the story drew to where they were currently. Camaz started to take notice of the people around them - his concern for Verne led him to see his ward sitting almost shoulder to shoulder with him, making him wonder how they had gotten so close so fast. Then he stopped all conversations and eyed the hooded man sitting in the corner.

  “I’m quite tired and didn’t sleep very well. Can you all please assure me that I’m not the only one seeing that person sitting there?” he said. He was joking, of course, as he spotted Rask hand the hooded man something to eat. At the very least he knew Rask could see him too.

  Ral opened his mouth to say something, but then clammed up. Camaz raised his eyebrows and glanced over at Aris who, of course, did not catch his look. However Verne caught the look and he sat up. “That is Mikol,” he said. “From the Somas tribe in the Ivassk desert… acquaintance to Ralos, from what I know.”

  “Ah.”

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  The hooded man then stood and drew back his hood and lowered the mask covering the lower part of his face. His skin was a dusky blue in color, his hair inky blue-black and sleek, but tied into a few braids. Where the eye whites should be were also black and they were the backdrop to glowing blue eyes. Acquaintance. Ral hadn’t spoken much to him about his time with the Somas but through Aris, Camaz had the distinct impression that Ral didn’t exactly leave the tribe on good terms.

  However he knows that Yscians can’t be turned by Gates. If this Mikol can fight half as well as Ral and continue to be unaffected by the Gate’s effects, he would be important to keep around when disaster strikes.

  Camaz massaged his head again, the headache now pounding through. “Enough with the storytelling. We need to figure out how to stop the end of the world. Or at least, the end of the Gaian race. It doesn’t take a specialist to know if that… thing up in the sky opens up, we’re all doomed.”

  “Isn’t that why you brought the head Librarian with us?” Gardlo asked. Camaz turned to the Librarian who no longer hid under her hood, letting long blond hair run free beyond the confines of her cloak. Gardlo crossed his arms as he studied the woman. “You both carried no tomes though.”

  As tired as he was, Camaz told everyone what he knew about the emperor, including how he had the secret tomes destroyed. The Librarian interjected then, assuring everyone that she had committed the tomes to memory.

  “Isn’t it too late?” Aris said. “Even if those tomes had the exact enchanting circle of how Gates are or were opened, we don’t have time to develop a closing spell. I doubt we can make it big enough anyway for something of that size.” She pointed up at the ceiling, indicating the dark line that floated many stories up beyond it.

  “M-maybe not closure. B-but maybe a w-warding spell,” Laell spoke up. She seemed to stutter more in the presence of so many people.

  “Agreed. If the talismans are any indication, the effects of the Gate can be staved off,” the Librarian intoned.

  Aris crossed her arms. “Does she actually have all those tomes memorized?” she asked. “The enchanting circles are huge and intricate and I know the Librarian is no runist.”

  “S-she can d-do it,” Laell said. “I-it’s her s-specialty.”

  “As long as you trust her.” Aris still sounded dubious.

  “She does. We are related by blood,” the Librarian said emotionlessly. Everyone stared at her. Now that she mentioned it Camaz could see similarities between the two. Before anyone could ask, she added: “Half-sisters.”

  It suddenly made sense - why Laell was so keen on the research on Gate closure and why she jumped at the chance to travel out east with him back on his mission to find Aris. Usually women would refuse to travel to such remote areas with strangers - most, if not all women that could study at the Academy were noble born. Even in the name of research, women wouldn’t risk their reputation being tarnished.

  But if one had the Head Librarian as their half-sibling… Camaz could see why Laell wanted to make a name for herself. The runist had turned beet red as if Camaz had said all those things aloud.

  Before he could figure out if it was more merciful to say something to comfort her or to simply ignore her embarrassment, the door flung open and a frazzled looking Raka burst through.

  “It’s starting,” he gasped. “Gates are opening within the Heart. People are turning.”