The Trials of Ildarwood: Spectres of the Fall, page 75
“Years of practice,” his gram replied.
“How are you feelin’ today?” Tannus asked nervously, though he already knew the answer. After all, every morning since he had returned from the Ildarwood, his gram had moved just a little bit more slowly than she had the day before, and her once-subtle signs of pain grew only more noticeable as the winter dragged on.
“Oh, don’t you start worryin’ about me,” his gram answered. “I’ve survived a lot worse than old age. Now, go get that wood before we both end up catchin’ a chill.”
Opening the front door despite the pile of snow that had built up against it overnight, Tannus discovered yet another basket of supplies that had been left on the front doorstep. Right beside it, a dwindling pile of greenwood made Tannus realize that he had forgotten to place another order. Once he returned inside, he reached for the coin purse in his satchel, but he knew without looking that his savings from the year were already drying up despite winter having only just started.
“Boy, is it startin’ to get bitter out there,” his gram observed as she sat down to eat. “I can’t remember the last time it was this bad. You might wanna throw on an extra log or two, just to be safe.”
“Great,” Tannus replied before returning with an armful of greenwood and tossing it piece by piece into the fireplace.
“Come on, now! How many times do I gotta tell ya? Use the small ones durin’ the day and the big round ones at night.”
“I’m sorry–would you like to come down here and do this while I sit there and criticize?”
“Might as well if you’re not gonna do it right.”
“Grumpy old toad,” he whispered.
“I heard that! I’m old, not deaf!”
His next stop that morning, once breakfast was over and the dishes were all clean, was Wisher’s Well. It had become part of his routine to throw a single Starling in once a week in the hope that his wish would come true, just as two of his other wishes had before. For so many weeks after returning from the Ildarwood, the only thing Tannus had wanted was for Dustane to recover from his injuries, but as his gram grew weaker, Tannus found himself wishing instead for her to make it through the winter.
Once his visit to Wisher’s Well was complete on that particular day, Tannus continued into town, where things were always quieter than usual once the pristine snows of winter finally began to pile up. Though nearly a dozen Ildarhorse carriages made their way through the streets, the shops in the center of Ranewood were nearly deserted, and of the fair few townsfolk Tannus managed to run into, nearly all of them stared down at him with nervous uncertainty whenever he passed by. After all, it had not taken long after the events in Dead End for word to spread about the blond Feronite first-year who had nearly burned down the Ildarwood. As an unfortunate consequence, Tannus found himself needing to quickly grow accustomed to being distrusted by any strangers who noticed the golden Ildarglass brand on the back of his right hand.
“Tannus!” a soft yet familiar voice shouted from in front of Fiori’s Flowers. Seeing Briyal running toward him was precisely the sight he needed to forget about his troubles that day.
“Hey, Bree,” he replied, smiling warmly at her as her mother walked briskly close behind. “Good mornin’, Madame Legarde.”
“Good morning, Tannus,” Leiliana replied, though without her usual vigor.
“I’m sorry about Fiori’s,” Tannus said, nodding his head toward the for sale sign in the shop’s main window.
“Yeah, I guess that awful caretaker is sellin’ everything,” said Briyal. “We were hopin’ to get some flowers for Lara, but it looks like we’ll just have to try somewhere else.”
“I’m pretty sure Jarryn’s family sells flowers,” Tannus offered, hoping to curry favor with Briyal.
“Well, I’m sure the flowers they sell are quite beautiful, but I’m afraid we were hopin’ for some that are a little bit more . . . traditional,” said Leiliana.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Tannus replied. “I guess I just figured flowers were flowers.”
“Not the ones they sell,” Leiliana mumbled before covering up her disdain with a smile.
“Any idea how Lara’s doin’?” Tannus asked, having heard little about her illness since Ranewood’s portion of the Ildarwood had been evacuated.
“They still can’t get her to wake up,” Briyal answered sullenly, “but we try to visit every day, just in case. Mom keeps sayin’ it’s good for us to spend time with her, since it might help her get better, but . . .”
“No buts,” Leiliana insisted. “If you think it’ll work, it’ll work.”
“Okay, Mom,” Briyal replied, shaking her head. “Did you wanna come with us? We were just on our way there now.”
“Sure. Why not?” Tannus answered. He could always order firewood later, after all.
They followed Briyal’s mother up the main road until they reached a large stone building that had withered vines growing up its faded facade. Tannus always dreaded visits to the healing center in town, for they reminded him far too much of suffering and death.
“How’s Dustie?” Briyal asked as they walked past the structure’s spiraling Ildarwood tree and climbed the healing center’s grand staircase.
“No clue,” Tannus answered. “The last time I saw him was right here, in the Silverward, the day after everything happened.”
“Is it true what I heard about his parents?” Leiliana asked nervously.
“That they’re awful, soulless monsters who told him every chance they got that they wished he’d never been born?” Tannus grumbled. “Yeah, unfortunately.”
“Such a shame,” Leiliana replied.
“You don’t happen to know where they took him, do you?” Tannus asked hopefully.
“I’m afraid not,” said Leiliana. “There are places for children and young people who are Broken all over the region, but there’s no tellin’ which one they took him to.”
“Any idea how Geonis was able to Break him like that?” Briyal dared to inquire.
“He found out Dustane’s deepest, darkest secret–the reason why his parents moved to Ranewood in the first place, and why they both hate him so much. Healer Meridana said stuff like that can Break a damaged soul all on its own, but I guess Geonis hated me so much after everything that happened this year, a little bit of that got in there too, and once you put those two things together with Ildarglass, it just . . . well . . . yeah.” Then Tannus’s voice failed him.
“Aw, that’s just heartbreaking,” Leiliana replied. “You truly have no idea how sorry we both are. Is your gram at least okay?”
“Winters are always hard for her,” Tannus replied, “but thankfully, she’s still hangin’ in there.”
“Well, I’m really glad to hear it. Now, if only you could teach Bree how to take care of a sweet old relative like that, I wouldn’t have to worry about what’s gonna happen when it’s time for me to retire.”
“Oh, don’t worry about that,” Briyal said. “I was just gonna hire a caretaker like Miss Hannover to keep an eye on you.”
“Over my dead body!” Leiliana replied before gasping and looking up to say, “Oh, um, no offense, signora.”
Tannus could not help but smirk as Briyal nudged him playfully, then he stopped and stared with amazement upon arriving outside Telara’s room. Astonished by the breathtaking view of shimmering silver leaves in the Ildarwood, Tannus took a few steps forward before finding himself lost in an entire sea of floral arrangements.
“They’re all still alive,” Briyal said with disappointment. “Does that mean she’s not gettin’ any better?”
“I think it just means she doesn’t need the Silver,” Leiliana answered, though her dour expression betrayed her deep concern. “Hopefully, that’s a good sign,” she offered, trying to stay optimistic.
“Good morning, Leila,” Alder Brent said from his seat beside Telara’s bed.
“Good morning, Alder,” Leiliana replied. “Any progress?”
“None,” Alder conceded, his beard more ragged than usual.
Glancing around the room, Tannus noticed the pillow and blankets nearby and wondered if the Overseer had been sleeping there every night since Telara had been admitted.
“I hope you don’t mind, but we brought a friend with us today–Tannus Ambers,” Leiliana said. “He was in a few lessons with Lara.”
“I’m familiar with Mr. Ambers,” Alder replied, causing a sudden knot to form in Tannus’s stomach.
“Are all these flowers from Silvermarsh?” Leiliana asked, removing a single Ildarglass rose from her purse and placing it in one of the vases beside Telara’s bed.
“Silvermarsh, Riverport, a couple arrangements from our cousins in Kaston. It’s a real shame about Fiori’s.”
“Travesty is more like it. You know we can’t let her get away with it.”
“One battle at a time, Leila. One battle at a time.”
“Speaking of battles,” Leiliana began as she approached the bed and placed her hand on Telara’s. “Has she stopped by to visit?”
“As far as I know, she hasn’t left the Ildarwood once since it happened.”
“Oh, well, not that it’s any of my business, but . . . shouldn’t she be stayin’ here every now and then just to give you a break?”
“You know how she is. Once her mind’s made up, there’s no talking her out of it. But I’m sure she’ll be here in a heartbeat once Lara wakes up.”
“Do the Healers have any idea how long that’ll be?”
“They’re not sure,” Alder confessed, though it pained him greatly to do so. “Whatever happened to her out there, it’s unlike anything any Healer within a hundred miles has ever encountered before. Even Healer Meridana said she’s never seen anything like it, and she’s been all over the world. I just hope we’ll be able to figure out how to save her soon. She’ll be devastated if she wakes up and finds out the Trials have started again without her.”
“When she wakes up,” Leiliana insisted, placing a gentle hand on Alder’s shoulder. “Just have faith that she’ll pull through, and she will. I promise.”
“Faith has always come easier to you than it has to me,” Alder replied.
“Yes, well, situations like these are as good a time as any to try takin’ it up again.”
For several minutes thereafter, the four of them stared down at Telara, each of them wishing and praying that she would get well as soon as possible. Yet only once the silence became unbearable for Tannus did Alder glance up at Briyal’s mother and say, “Would you mind if I had a few minutes alone with Mr. Ambers here?”
“Oh, um, no, not at all,” Leiliana answered with surprise. “We’ll just wait outside for a few minutes, won’t we, Bree?” But before Briyal could answer, her mother had already taken her by the arm and led her out into the hallway.
The last thing Tannus saw before the door closed behind them was Briyal’s surprised expression as she craned her neck one last time to try to see what was happening within.
“If you’re wondering what happened to your friend,” Alder began, his eyes still focused on Telara, “his parents have taken him to a facility for people with his condition.”
“Which one?”
“I’m not sure. The paperwork they filed with my office only states that he’s been removed from the Trials for ‘spiritual reasons.’”
“It’s not fair,” said Tannus. “He should have been free from those people for the rest of his life the second his Trials started.”
“If things had turned out differently the other night, then there’s a pretty good chance that would’ve been true. I just hope you know how much I appreciate what you and your friends tried to do out there. Wildewood trees can be exceptionally dangerous in the wrong hands, and I suspect those boys would have been able to cause irreparable harm for years to come if they had succeeded.”
“Some of them did,” Tannus replied, disappointed by so many of his failures that night.
“But the casualties were far fewer than there would have been otherwise,” Alder insisted. “I am, however, concerned about your future in the Trials–and to be clear, I don’t mean that in any way as a threat. It’s just . . . what you did out there that night was . . . remarkable, but also terrifying. I have never, in all my years, seen anything quite like it from someone your age, and I don’t think you fully understand how dangerous those fires burning inside you truly are.”
Repositioning himself to face Tannus more directly, he explained, “Goldenfire can be just like any other spectral substance in high doses–incredibly addictive and unspeakably dangerous. The more you allow it to influence your actions and your thoughts, the more control it will inevitably have over you, until one day you realize you don’t actually have any control over it at all. I’ve seen it happen far more often than I care to admit, and I would truly hate to see it happen to you too.”
“I can control it,” Tannus insisted. “I just . . . I don’t know . . . lost control that one time.”
“Unfortunately, that’s what they always say the first time it happens,” Alder replied, “and it is always just the first of many, many more times.” Moving across the room toward his satchel, he asked, “Do you remember anything about Umbert Singleton and his theories of spectral entanglement from Ms. Rondles’s lessons?”
“Not really,” Tannus answered honestly.
Retrieving a small case from within the satchel and bringing it back to the bed, Alder explained, “Singleton’s tenth theory states that two or more spectral entities can become closely entangled, without ever coupling, so long as their elemental harmonics are either very much the same or what he would call ‘compatibly opposite.’”
“Oh, yeah, right,” Tannus mumbled. “I can’t believe I couldn’t remember that.”
“In practical terms,” Alder continued with a hint of amusement, “he believed that a deep and nearly unbreakable spiritual bond could form between people who are very similar or between people whose opposing spectral energies serve to balance each other out.” Then Alder opened the case slowly. “Dustane was an Iconite–someone who can absorb the chaos around them and always find some way to restore order. You, however, are a Feronite, through and through. You are fueled by your emotions. You’re passionate about your commitment to the people and things that matter most to you, and if I’m not mistaken, it would appear that you’re even developing a tendency to act first and deal with the consequences later. In theory, you two were such good friends because you balanced each other out. He grounded you, while you empowered him.”
“I don’t mean to be rude, Mr. Brent, but why are you telling me all this?” Tannus asked as he grew increasingly uncomfortable with the conversation the more it centered around Dustane.
“I promise, this will all make sense in a minute,” Alder said before revealing the contents of the small case he had retrieved. Within were eight pendant necklaces, each containing an Ildarglass crystal of a different color with a silver crest designed to match that spectral element enclosed within. “Now, each of these pendants contains what are called Diversian stones, which are specifically designed to help restore stability to any soul that has fallen too far out of balance.”
Offering the necklace with the sapphire stone to Tannus, he added, “Until you can find your inner balance again, I strongly suggest that you start wearing this.”
Taking the pendant from Alder, Tannus was surprised by how cold yet comforting the crystal felt the instant it touched his open hand.
“It will take a little while to get used to,” Alder explained. “And you may experience some dizziness and a slight lack of motivation as your spirit adjusts, but it will help keep you from entering a Fury state again, so long as you allow it to work.”
“Thank you,” Tannus replied, not entirely certain if he was ready to wear it just yet.
“We need a lot more Ildarbound like you out in the Ildarwood,” said Alder, “and a lot more just like my daughter–young, determined souls who are willing to stand up to the Cynders and protect those who need protecting. I’m afraid to say that, without real Ildarguards out there to keep an eye on things, the Ildarwood will only grow wilder and more dangerous as the Cynders test the limits of their control.”
“But what if I’m tired of fightin’?” asked Tannus. “What if I just wanna go out there and finish my Trials so I can just get on with my life?”
“Then a lot more kids like your friend will be forced to pay the price,” Alder answered. “There’s no telling how many innocent souls will be lost or corrupted by the imbalances in the Ildarwood right now, especially if they continue to get worse–which they most certainly will. The corruption festering in those woods must be stopped before it’s too late, or else everyone inside the Ildarwood and out will suffer the consequences–whether you’re still Ildarbound by then or not.”
“But the Wildewood tree was destroyed,” said Tannus. “Wasn’t that the source of the Blight?”
“The rise of Cynders and the corruption of ancient Wildewood trees are more symptoms than sources, though they certainly both have long histories of making matters worse,” Alder replied. “That particular tree had been so corrupted by all the pain and suffering it’s been forced to witness over the years that it could no longer be trusted to safely bestow its true gifts without corrupting all who received them. But with any luck, when that particular Wildewood tree grows back, it will ideally have far fewer unpleasant memories, thanks to the cleansing power of all that Goldenfire you managed to release.”
“So the Blight will still keep gettin’ worse?” asked Tannus.
“Oh, most certainly. So if the Ildarwood is to have any hope at all of recovering before your Trials are through, it will need you willing and ready to stand and fight for it when the time comes. And please believe me when I tell you that I wonder every single day if I could have done something different all those years ago, back during my own Trials, to somehow prevent that most unfortunate chain of events that brought my daughter to this bed. And I would truly hate for you to ever have that same regret too.”
