Chapters 40-42

Secret Society

It had taken time, patience, some pleading, a little bit of magic, an excessive amount of frowning, and three long days, but finally, finally, Rienna broke off a piece of clear crystal the size of a beetle. Without Xia being able to hurl the crystal into other objects with impossible force, it had been a fair amount more difficult than splitting the purple one.

With malicious happiness, Rienna placed the crystalline shard in the locket around her neck and channeled some of the magicka she had recovered into it.

It seemed like it would be able to contain just as much, maybe even more, magic than she had ever put in the full crystal. That, combined with its convenient accessibility and portability, Rienna felt that the effort had been worth it. Not to mention that she thought having it in the locket was cool.

And she'd finished just in time to go to the Jevitan meeting.

Her parents had decided to go, but they had subtly implied she was not to come. When she'd directly asked if she could, they'd give her some excuse like reviewing the school work she'd missed, or that she should take a break after so much traveling. School had been on Summer vacation for a week since she'd been back; schoolwork was hardly a pressing matter.

They had left earlier that morning with the horses and a wagon, deciding to make a day out of it and sell some goods while in town. Luke went, too. Apparently he hadn't been traveling too much.

Rienna put on her best dress, which passed for regular noble clothes, and combed her shortened hair. Finally grabbing her note in case she forgot the address, she set out along the road to the marketplace.

They traveled quickly and soon reached the main town, passing the farms and ranches along the way. The haze was thicker there. Fires burned brightly from streetlamps to make up for the smoke wafting out of the many chimneys.

Outside, it was cold but stuffy. As they entered the main street where the road turned to cobblestone, the increasing number of cozy looking shops became very tempting. Rienna wished she had brought a jacket.

She kept an eye out for her parents and Luke as she entered the open area where the farmers often sold their goods. The area was smaller, but a lot less crowded than similar areas in the Alyene had been. A few people milled about, but otherwise it seemed that everyone kept indoors.

This was not unusual. In the more inhabited zones of Vieryen, there wasn't much to be gained from going outside. There wasn’t really any nature, only smog, and it was always cold. Anyone outside was only gathering groceries from the farmers or the stands of 'magical crops' manned by regular guards, not fairyeld.

Rienna turned and went off the main road towards the nobles’ neighborhoods.

With Xio's magic suppressed, there wasn’t much opportunity for conversation. So Rienna occupied herself with her thoughts as they strolled down the road. What would Albert's manor look like? She hoped there was a secret underground cavern where the Order of the Jevitan met. There would be tall stone pillars and dark walls with mysterious sconces. And a long table with a red cloth going down the center. Oh! And of course there would be underground tunnels going all over the kingdom.

That, or it would be a mansion with a bunch of stuffy rich people acting like they were so cool for organizing a rebellion. She hoped not; it would be disappointing.

Eventually, homes that could only belong to the upper class started popping up around them. Many of the houses were built with a pearly white stone and were giant. They were all two stories tall, big enough for two families, and had well tended yards that looked very nice compared to the hazy air and yellowing grass by the road.

They reached an intersection with signs pointing in the direction of their respective roads or streets. Rienna looked down at her paper. "149, Misty Avenue, Wishing Roads," she murmured. "Well, I guess we go that way," she said pointing up the north road.

As they walked, Rienna scanned the front doors for the right number. Odds were on the left and evens were on the right starting with '140.’ Number 149 was almost all the way at the end of the street. It was of course giant, but not as extravagant as some of the other houses Rienna had just seen.

Rienna remembered what Albert had said and snuck around the back of the monochrome building to look for a back entrance. She found a small set of steps leading up to a door set in the stone. Dull colored wildflowers with their spiky leaves lined the wall decoratively.

She only wondered a moment whether her parents had arrived yet before excitement won over and she approached the door. She stood straight and daintily knocked on the wood, doing her best to look proper.

A servant opened the door and looked down at Rienna with a confused look. She was young, probably in her twenties, but her bun and tired face made her look older. "What are you doing here, young lady?"

Rienna fidgeted with her dress. "Um, well, Mr… Er." She realized she didn't know Albert’s last name. "Mr. Albert said I should come? My parents may already be here."

The servant tried to smile kindly. "Oh. Are you Rienna? Your parents are not here yet. Please come in." She opened the door further and brought Rienna inside.

The manor wasn't as grand as King Hoyand's castle, but it was neat and well kept. Paintings depicting magical creatures and plants decorated the halls, though the building remained a boring but polished white throughout, besides the dully colored carpets that lined the ground of bedrooms and sitting areas they passed.

The servant said nothing and led Rienna to a room with two glass walls. Inside were two adults, a middle aged man and woman. She left Rienna and the cats with hardly a word.

The two people stopped talking and looked over at Rienna. They each wore a nice brown shirt with a black patch on the right shoulder with a white outline of a flower. They were clearly of some status.

Rienna waved nervously. "Hello. I'm Rienna."

The woman's face lit with recognition. "You're the girl who survived the Alyene."

"Yes?" Rienna said. She realized she was fidgeting with her dress again and forced her arms to her sides.

"Are your parents not coming?" the man asked.

"No! They’re coming. Any time now. They went to the market first." She looked down at Xia and Xio. "These are my cats. They went out into the Alyene with me," she said, trying to buy time for her parents to arrive and save her from the struggles of idle conversation.

The woman looked down at the cats and smiled kindly. "That's nice. Were they very helpful?"

"Oh, yes. Their magic works much better outside The Suppression."

"What was the Alyene like?" the man asked.

Rienna thought for a moment. "It was beautiful," she said. "And there was so much wildlife and so many plants."

"Didn't anything attack you?" he asked.

"Well, there was this one witch, but then another witch saved me." She hesitated before saying, "It was really the fairyeld that caused the most trouble for me."

They looked confused, but fortunately, before they could ask any more questions, the servant came back in and said, "The parents are here," and led Evie, Dave, and Luke inside.

Dave saw Rienna and frowned. "Rienna? What are you-"

"Rienna!” Evie interrupted with a wide smile that made Rienna flinch. “I’m so glad you could make it here while we ran errands in town.”

Rienna's father still frowned slightly but played along. "Right. Very glad."

The woman at the other side of the room stood and her companion followed suit. "Hello. I'm Tess and this is Jerry. We're messengers for the Order." She held out her hand and they all went around shaking hands and introducing themselves. "In the next couple of hours, we will bring you up to speed on the happenings of the Order, explain roles within the Order, and give you official patches." She tapped the patch on her shoulder.

"We'll start by going to the meeting room," Jerry said. "There, we can explain the roles in the Order."

Tess nodded. "Follow me." She led them out of the glass walled room and back into the hallway.

Jerry began explaining what the Order was while they walked. "The Order of the Jevitan is an elite group of peoples dedicated to the throne and usurping the corrupt Sovereign. We were founded by Albert Murphy twenty years ago. This," he said, stopping at a closed wood door, "is the entrance to our headquarters." Tess unlocked the door and revealed a stone staircase going down.

Their steps echoed as they walked down the stairway. The stones were stained a dark black and lanterns were lit every few meters. Rienna couldn’t help but grin; it truly felt like they were entering a secret base.

"This is our meeting room," Tess said, bringing them into a large room with a long table in the center. Her voice echoed on the walls. "There were a lot fewer people in the Order when it was founded; you will have to stand during the meeting. Only the leaders sit at the table. We’ll bring out tea once more people start to arrive, though we did run out of fruit tea, which is a problem."

She walked over to a wall with a large map on it. In the center, a circle outlined a miniature version of Vieryen. Around it was a space labeled 'The Alyene.' It was blotchy and not complete. Rufdand was nowhere to be seen.

Tess pointed to Vieryen. "This is the Kingdom. The rest is the Alyene as reported by the Order’s explorers," she said "Explorers know the locations of magic crystals that tear holes through The Suppression. They are trained in espionage and report about the outside world. They primarily follow the fairyeld."

She moved on to another map, this one almost solely of Vieryen. Purple and red dots were pinned into the canvas. "Our spies work within the Kingdom and keep track of fairyeld activities. We even have a few within the fairyeld themselves that give us information of the Sovereign's stronghold in the mountains.” She paused. "Are there any questions so far?"

"You mentioned some sort of royalty at the beginning?" Luke said. "Who are they?" It was one of Rienna's questions too.

Jerry nodded. "Yes. The three remaining of the royal family. King Ivan and his two children, Prince Malcom and Princess Nadia. We serve them and their right to rule."

"Why is there still a royal family?" Dave asked. "How come the Sovereign didn't… Well, kill them, I guess?"

"She took away any power and wealth they had and left them in the Palace of Sands. Originally, they still played a role in keeping the public under control, thanks to their influence, but for the past two centuries, they have been confined to their castle. Royalty has so long been removed from Vieryen that they have no power over the people. Only the royal staff and the Order of the Jevitan know they still exist," Jerry said somewhat proudly.

So they sit in a palace all day with no responsibilities, Rienna thought. She wandered over to the table and fiddled with the tablecloth. Still, it was exciting to think that Vieryen still had kings and princesses. She wondered if she would ever get to meet the princess.

After a moment of silence, Jerry brought out three silver rings and gave them to Dave, Evie, and Luke. "The final group within the order is the messengers like me and Tess. We recruit new members, send messages between the Order and the Throne, and help raise awareness of the Sovereign's corruption. You will also be messengers. Every messenger wears a silver ring to show dedication to the cause."

"Also, so that other messengers don't waste time trying to subtly convince you that the Sovereign is corrupt," Tess said, showing a ring of her own. "Even if you don't officially join the order, this will help us keep track of who knows the truth."

"Yes, also that," Jerry said, waving his hand dismissively. "Anyway, you wouldn't have to be super dedicated to join. We're actually hoping you could just convince people in the farming district that the Sovereign might be corrupt, since we don’t have anyone stationed there yet."

Rienna's parents looked at each other. Dave looked doubtful and Evie looked like she was trying to talk to him telepathically but it wasn't working.

Dave turned back to the messengers. "I don't think we shou-" Evie glared at him. "-we have much other choice," he amended. He glanced at his wife exasperatedly.

"Great," Tess said. "Patches for everyone!" She gave out patches matching the one on her shoulder. She looked down at Rienna. "I guess you can have one, too," she said. "I'm not sure what your role could be, though."

Rienna frowned slightly as she took the patch. "Thanks," she said without much feeling.

"Wait," Luke said, holding up his patch. "What will I do?"

"Oh! I had almost forgotten," Jerry said. "We would greatly appreciate it if you could join us as a correspondent to the Throne."

Luke raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"What?" Rienna agreed.

"Yes. We could use someone who is up to date with the politics of the people living in the Alyene. The royal family does not want Vieryen to seem like an underdeveloped kingdom once we rid ourselves of the Sovereign and rejoin the world," Tess explained.

"I know hardly anything about politics!" Luke protested.

"While that may be true, you know more than anyone else in Vieryen on the matter. You are a unique asset."

Luke looked down at his patch. "If you say so."

Jerry smiled. "Good. Now that that's settled, let's go over current events before the rest of the Order arrives."

Rienna wandered the room as the adults talked. Apparently the Order had only just learned about the existence of the crystal caves. The messengers assured them that if there was anything else new, it would be announced during the meeting later that day.

Rienna turned at the sound of footsteps coming down the staircase.

Albert appeared, wearing dark robes with a hood he wasn't using. He saw everyone and smiled. "Ah. Good. You all came! How exciting," he said. "I can't wait to hear how you do!"

Tess nodded. "They know everything they need to know," she said.

"Wonderful! Now, is everything set for the meeting?"

"Just missing the people."

"Good. They'll be arriving in about fifteen minutes, yes?"

"Yes," Jerry replied simply.

"Good, good." He looked over at Rienna who was standing in front of a tapestry. "Rienna! I'm glad you came. Come, I have something to show you."

Rienna checked with her mother with a glance and followed Albert into what had been described as the Order's record room. He pulled open a drawer and handed her a poster. "You have magic, yes?”

Rienna looked down at the paper. On it was a drawing of her face and the word wanted. Beneath was a short description saying, "Young girl of ten years of age. Wanted for the destruction of the caves and crimes against the fairyeld. May be dangerous, traveling with two cats."

I'm eleven, she thought, annoyed. She looked back up at Albert. "Nothing here says I have magic."

Albert opened and closed his mouth and looked down at the paper. "Oh. Right. Sorry about that. I'll take that back now." He took the wanted poster and filed it back into the drawer. "That was my excuse. If anyone asks what we talked about, tell them about the poster."

Rienna frowned. She found herself doing that a lot lately. "Okay."

"Thanks. Now, about your magic. I know you have some. One of our explorers saw your encounter with the fairyeld in the woods. That’s also how we knew there were other people travelling with you.” He watched her for a moment, but she said nothing. “Alright, well, I'm not going to tell the Order, yet. I don't know how much your magic can help us, but I want you to know that I think it can help us defeat the Sovereign. As it is, she is too powerful. But if we had our own mage. Even a young one..." His eyes sparkled. "Just consider helping us, okay?"

Rienna nodded.

Albert beamed and pat Rienna on the shoulder. "Fantastic! I'll summon you some time before the next meeting. Now, go find your parents before people start arriving." He waved her off and began looking through some papers.

Rienna turned to leave.

"Oh. And, Rienna?" She looked back warily. "Could you ask your parents if they can make apple tea for next time? Our fruit tea supplies are running low. It would be immensely appreciated."

As it got closer to three o'clock, people began trickling into the meeting room. They were mostly nobles and merchants, but there were some commoners too. Everyone wore something with a patch that had a white outline of a flower, usually on the shoulder or on the chest and many people had rings or other forms of silver accessories.

By the time the clock chimed, marking three o’clock, there were about forty other people in the room. Twelve sat at the table including Albert at the head. It was actually a bit less than Rienna had been hoping.

Everyone quieted as the clock finished. The scene was exactly what Rienna would have thought of when thinking of a secret society, minus the murmurings about tea and how cold it was.

Albert stood and looked more serious than Rienna had ever seen him. "Welcome all to another gathering of the Order of the Jevitan!" he declared loudly, his voice echoing. Then he smiled again. "Please welcome to our new messengers for the agriculture district, Evie and Dave Salvinen! And also Luke, our newest royalty correspondent!"

There were some claps and people around them nodded and said hello. A few looked at Rienna and the cats strangely. She was the only kid in the room and Luke was the youngest other person.

"I deeply regret having to announce a continued shortage of fruit teas," Albert continued. There were some grumblings and a few people looked around smugly from cups of herbal teas. "Yes, yes. I know. It's just a travesty, I'm sure. However, you can still enjoy our green teas." He gestured to the other end of the table where a teapot sat with empty teacups. "Now, let's begin our meeting with our messengers, shall we?"

A tall man stood from the table with some papers and cleared his throat. "Frequent customers of 'The Little Termite Tavern and Inn’ are successfully doubtful of our current leadership. A rise of five percent of buyers now choose local produce over foods from the magic crop fields. Eighty percent of those surveyed agree that the smog is out of control and forty percent agree that the Sovereign has done nothing to help it. Current plans include more recruiting and continued observation of market sellings. Thank you," the man said robotically. He sat back down to polite clapping.

The spies' report was similar. Nothing dramatic was happening, the Sovereign continued to be out of the spies' sight, and no one was suspicious of the Order’s existence. The spies did discover a secret entrance in the Sovereign's fortress, but had yet to see where it led as they were ‘still preparing necessary resources.’

Rienna yawned as she clapped with the rest of the crowd and turned her attention to the man representing the explorers.

The man coughed and walked to stand in front of the large map. There were some confused mutterings from the crowd as he nervously flipped through a notebook. "Ahem. Hello. I am William Takkerhef, I will be serving as head explorer." The crowd stayed in confused silence. "I regret to inform you that… as of two days ago, that the former head of explorers, Samuel McTran, was… killed by the witch residing in the Outer Woods."

Everyone gasped. There was a loud clamor as people started chatting amongst themselves and various members yelled questions over the noise of the people around them. People standing moved to get closer to the speaker to hear what he'd say next, but he just stood there, not sure what to do with all of the racket.

"Quiet, Everyone! Please!" Albert yelled over the noise, commanding everyone’s attention. "Thank you," he said, his face remaining somber. "This is a tragedy and quite a surprise. Please, William, continue."

"Yes, thank you," William said shakily. "We did recover the body, but, um, we ask that no one comes to see it. It is not a pleasant sight. We will have to stage his death so that the public can know and mourn. Also, so that the fairyeld, um, don't get suspicious. We don't know yet what his documented… reason for death will be, but so you know, it was definitely the witch."

He coughed again and pointed to a spot right below Westrikov on the map. Still looking at his notes, he said, "Meanwhile, as you remember from last time this is um, where we believe the Sovereign gets the crystals we use for creating, um, doors in The Suppression. We still don't know what she uses them for. Uh…” He flipped through his notes. “Now, I would like to invite our main correspondent of the area to explain current events," he finished, quickly sitting back down as another explorer took the stage.

They don't know what the Sovereign uses the crystals for? Rienna thought with a frown.

"Hello," the new speaker said, taking her spot in front of the map. "I just arrived from the Four Town region two days ago with important information. One week ago, the entrance to the caves mentioned was sabotaged and collapsed. If we continue losing crystals, this could be problematic and we may eventually lose the ability to go into the Alyene." She said the word like a noble would, making Rienna wince. She waited a moment as some worried murmurs went around. "There are also rumors going around the area that there is another sorcerer like the Sovereign. We understand that this may cause some worry, as this new sorcerer may contest with Sovereign Jenni for power, but please know that while we do not have all of the information, we do not believe this sorcerer to be a threat to Vieryen or the Throne. Thank you." She left the map and took her seat at the table.

There was some chaos as the crowd processed what the explorer had said. Despite the speaker’s assurances, people were immediately very anxious and started speculating that it was this new sorcerer who had killed the head explorer, not the forest witch. Rienna felt the urge to cast magic light all around just to shut them up.

She felt her mother's hand on her shoulder and looked up. Evie was watching her with confusion and surprise. Rienna remembered how she hadn't believed her when she said she had magic. She shot a glare and looked back at the crowd.

Albert stood and attempted to speak over the crowd. "Please stay calm, everyone. Remember, we do not believe this sorcerer to be a threat. That will conclude the meeting. I'm sorry we have to leave on such worrisome notes. I trust you to keep this within the Order of the Jevitan. I will see you all in two weeks! Please stick around if you like, we have snacks in the dining room in memory of Samuel."

The crowd gradually dispersed and filed through the door and into the main manor. Some left immediately, some grabbed more tea, groups formed to discuss the meeting, and some went to the dining room to eat cheese and crackers. Overall, it seemed that the action was over and they could go home.

When they got outside, Rienna’s parents led them down the street to an intersection where they'd left the wagon and horses. Everything was untouched and the horses were grazing happily on the side of the road.

Rienna noticed a handful of people from the meeting walking down the streets or tending to weeds, as if nothing was unusual. She had to admit that despite their shallow, self-centeredness, they seemed dedicated to the Order and weren't necessarily unskilled in the roles they had chosen.

They rode quietly through the streets, the most noise coming from the hooves of the horses. There was a silent agreement to not make too much chatter in case they caused trouble with any of the people living in the fancy houses around them.

They passed through the nobles’ plaza and entered the main town and middle class neighborhoods. As they did so, Evie turned to Rienna. "We told you not to come," she said sternly. "And then you came anyway."

Rienna had been anticipating this, but her heart still fluttered nervously. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I wanted to come."

"Rienna, I thought we made it clear that you weren't supposed to come!" her father said over his shoulder. "You saw those people. You were the only kid there."

“I'm sorry," she said again.

Evie sighed. "I guess you're part of this now. What did Albert show you, anyway?"

Rienna explained the wanted poster and how he knew she had magic. She knew he hadn't wanted her to tell anyone about that part, but these were her parents, surely he hadn't meant for her to keep it from them.

Her mother pressed her lips together thoughtfully. "So, he wants to talk to you in a week about how you can use your… magic for the Order?" She shook her head. "Well, now you definitely are part of this. And… you have magic?"

"I already told you that when I first came back," Rienna said with tired quietness.

"I know, I know," Evie said apologetically. "But you haven’t used any magic since then as far as I know. It's a lot that you’re expecting us to just believe."

"I told you, I was still recovering from being attacked by fairyeld. Sorry."

"Rienna," her father said warningly, casting a glance back at her.

"Sorry," Rienna said, more genuinely this time. "Here, I can give you an example now." With some difficulty, she spun some magicka into a ball of tangled light and cringed at the uncomfortable pressure. She handed the globe to her mother.

Evie gaped at the ball of light in her hand. "Wow." She tossed the light back and forth in her hands, turning it over and spinning it around. She waved her hand through the wisps of light that swirled off of it. "This is amazing," she said, shaking her head. She handed the light back to Rienna. "What else can you do?"

Rienna gladly reabsorbed the magicka, causing the light to evaporate. "Anything I can imagine as long as I have the magic to do it," she said. "I couldn't, say, create another Suppression. That requires a lot of magic that is constantly being used."

"How does it work?" Luke asked.

Rienna paused. How could she explain this? "It’s just like another kind of energy or material. Except everything has some. Except here. A lot of things here don't have magic," Rienna tried to explain. "You sort of just use it and if you get tired you just need to rest before you can do more." She paused and looked up at her audience. "Does that make sense?"

"Maybe?" Luke said. "Sure. I think I understand."

"Well, I'm glad someone here did, 'cause I sure didn't," Dave said from his spot at the reins.

Rienna laughed, relieved to no longer be under doubt. She hoped her parents wouldn't stay upset that she had gone to the meeting without their permission. She didn't actually like going against their wishes. They were her parents after all.

Maybe now they would understand that she really did want to help, and that she actually could.

Xio’s Demands

A little less than a week later, Rienna went out with Xio and Xia to pick some apples for the market. After finally convincing her parents that she didn't need to catch up on history lessons (as clearly the history she was taught was flawed), her parents had decided that she should start working more around the orchard. They had said something like, "And with this new magic of yours, you'll be able to do even more work!"

Rienna didn't mind; she liked working in the orchard. Especially since half the time, she was really just playing. Plus, she and the cats could get closer to the edge of The Suppression this way.

"I's bird of pretty feathers! Watch, I fly!" Xio yelled, jumping off a high branch of a tree.

Xia gave a startled meow and leapt off the branch after her son. She plummeted after him and grabbed his scruff just in time to set him down gently using her magic. She growled lightly as she cleaned her paw in annoyance.

Rienna gave a startled laugh. "Whoa! Xio! You can't go jumping off trees like that. You might hurt yourself."

"Not if I's bird. Mama can saved I." The kitten purred and rubbed Rienna's ankle. "But I's bird, so." Xia growled again at her son.

Rienna shook her head and smiled. "Did you find any apples up there?" she asked.

"They's green. Tiny, green. Not food," Xio squeaked and wove through Rienna's legs. "Always not food. You silly."

"People can eat plants for food, Xio," Rienna said. "Anyway, thanks for looking. I think we've passed the majority of our harvest time. It'll be a bit before we have more apples. Let's head back." She started walking back towards her house.

"What if magic apples?!" Xio burst out excitedly.

Rienna paused. "What? Like I use magic to make them grow faster?

"Yes! So cool!"

Bewildered, Rienna shook her head. "I have no idea how. And that sounds like it would use a lot of magic." She continued walking back. "Maybe some other time."

"But you magic full, yes?" Xio prompted.

"I mean, yes, but like I said, I have no idea how. And The Suppression would make it difficult," Rienna said, waving her hand at the orchard.

"C’mon! Try it?"

Rienna looked down at the kitten in confusion. "Why are you so interested in this? Fine, I'll try, but I just don't see much point."

"Work on plant, it work on food, yes?" Xio said. "Make big bug."

"Ew, Xio. That's gross," Rienna said.

"You try still?"

Rienna sighed and stopped walking. "Yes, alright. We need to go back to that tree now, though."

"Yay!" Xio mewed. He spun around and began trotting back towards the tree. He began singing a little tune as he went along, "I's bird. I eat bug. Big bug! Big bug! Eat 'em, yum!"

Rienna walked after the kitten, perplexed. Cats were insistent about the randomest things.

Xia saw everyone walking back and swiveled her head between Rienna and Xio in confusion. She did her own version of a sigh and stated her inconvenience loudly before trailing after them.

They got back to the tree Xio had checked and stopped. Before Rienna could start climbing, Xio yelled, "I now mighty squirrel, climb I up!" and scrambled up into the foliage of the tree.

Rienna quickly stepped back as the kitten darted past her. She gazed up at the tree in exasperation. The kitten was always so full of energy. She followed him up the tree at a much slower pace, making sure the branches could hold her weight.

She stopped with her feet in an intersection of a branch and the trunk. Holding the branch next to her and leaning against the base, she looked up at Xio. "Where are the apples?" she asked.

"Here!" Xio exclaimed, climbing onto a small bunch of unripened apples.

"Okay, let me get closer." Carefully, Rienna climbed closer to the apples before sitting so that one leg could stand on a small branch below her while she rested the rest of her weight on an upper branch. "Okay. Let's see what this looks like," she said, looking into the realm of magicka.

She was pleased to find that the trees had magic within them. It wasn’t as much as most trees had outside The Suppression, but it was still there. The apples shone brighter than the rest of the tree, giving magicka to any possible future offspring that would grow from the seeds.

"Is it working?" Xio squeaked.

Rienna shook her head "What? No. I haven’t tried anything yet."

"Do stuff then! I want see it work.”

"Grr. Fine. I'm trying something!" Rienna used her magicka to pull more of the tree's magic into the fruits. Maybe if she could make the tree give the apples more magicka it would also start giving more nutrients. She watched the magicka of the fruit grow brighter as she added more and more magicka from the tree into it.

She frowned. The apple was now overflowing with magicka, meaning most of what she was sending into it was just fading away once it was no longer in contact with the small fruit.

"Is not work," Xio said helpfully.

"No. No it is not," Rienna agreed tiredly. "I'm going to try something else."

She took a deep breath and mentally reached out to the tree's magic. It pulsed slowly through the tree in a dim glow. She tried to connect to the tree and understand how it fed the apples. Using her magic, she imagined pushing material up the tree and into the apple, guiding it up there with her magicka. Maybe the tree would understand.

She opened her eyes and looked hopefully at the apples. A moment passed and nothing happened. She sighed and looked at the kitten. "I don't know Xio. I don't think I'll be able to do it. I'm already feeling a little drained."

"Wait!" Xio said. "It may work still."

"Xio, this is hard in The Suppression. You know that," Rienna said frustratedly.

"No. It grow, see?" Xio insisted.

Doubtfully she looked back up at the apple. To her surprise it had grown noticeably and was turning a pinkish in some spots. "Wait. It's actually working?" she said. She watched in fascination as the apple grew redder and larger. It became round and ripe in the matter of minutes.

Then the skin at the top and bottom crinkled and softened. "Wait!" Rienna cried desperately. "Quick, Xio, grab the apple!" she yelled up at the kitten.

He saw her urgency and batted the top of the apple with all of his might. As his paw came down, the apple easily popped off the tree and fell to the ground.

Rienna scrambled down the tree and ran over to the apple. She picked it up and turned it over, examining its condition. It was still good, relatively. The side it had landed on was dented and soft and the bottom of the apple looked like it was a bit old. But still, the majority of the fruit was a shiny red that promised to be delicious.

"I's bird!" Xio suddenly yelled above her.

Quickly, she looked up and saw Xio jump towards her. She opened her arms to catch him and he landed on her collar in a secure embrace. He immediately crawled to her shoulder, digging in his claws so he could stand.

"Xio!" Rienna said sternly "Ow! That hurt! I told you not to jump off trees like that! You could've been hurt, you know. I was hurt." She picked up the cat with one hand and set him on the ground.

"Sorry, Rienna," Xio said, somewhat genuine. "But I's bird. You cannot stop the bird."

Rienna growled. "You're a cat, Xio. Cats can't fly."

"Mama fly," Xio pointed out.

Rienna sighed. She knew she couldn't win an argument against Xio. "Yes. Yes she can. But that's her power. Not your power. Alright?"

"Yup!" Xio said cheerfully, jumping down and bouncing down the path to the house. "And I get there before you!"

"Wait! You can't declare a race and just start running! Hey! Slow down!" Rienna yelled, running after the kitten. She laughed breathlessly. "Cheater!" As annoyed as she was, she was glad that arguments with Xio never lasted long, his attention span was too short for that.

When they reached the house, her parents and Luke were waiting for her.

Evie smiled. “Perfect timing! Lunch is just about ready.”

“And one of the messengers just gave us mail,” Dave added.

“Wait, really?” Rienna asked, intrigued. She sat down in a chair by the dining table.

Luke nodded and waved a piece of paper in the air. “I got a letter from my mom.”

“How did she know how to send you one?”

“I sent a letter with one of the explorers going that way after the meeting, telling her I won’t make it back within a month,” Luke explained. “and about Dabon…” he added.

Rienna sat up. “Oh?”

Luke nodded. “Yup. They found him, Rienna. After she got my letter, she went with a group of people downstream to see if they could find him. He was asleep, leaning against the riverbed.”

“Is he okay?”

Luke glanced at Rienna’s parents. “He’s… alive. When they found himhe had obviously been traveling, was sick, and his leg was swollen. He also had a gash along his arm. But he’s alive, and… recovering..”

Rienna felt a wave of relief at the news. She hadn’t realized how much it had been wearing on her.

Evie smiled carefully. “That’s good news. Are you going to send your mother another letter?”

“If I can find another explorer going that way, but I might not be able to until the next meeting.”

“Well, maybe we’ll see someone soon.”

They quieted and Evie served them all sandwiches. Rienna gladly ate her magic apple with her lunch and explained what she had learned to all of them. They didn’t understand how it worked, but they agreed that it was an important thing to know.

Luke quickly ate his sandwich and stood. “I have to meet with the royalty today,” he said. “I’m going to meet with Tess and Jerry in town.”

“Oh. I had forgotten all about that,” Rienna said.

Evie frowned slightly at Rienna, but turned back to Luke. “Alright. I hope it goes well.”

“Thanks,” Luke said, stepping out the door.

Rienna and her parents continued eating in silence. They seemed strangely preoccupied, though, as they ate their sandwiches. Evie kept smiling comfortingly at Rienna, like something was wrong.

"Did I miss something?" she finally asked them.

"What do you mean?" her father asked casually.

Rienna tried not to roll her eyes. "You guys are acting weird. What happened?" She looked around. "Did you lose something important?"

"Oh, no. Not at all," Evie reassured her. "But, once you finish your food, you did get a letter, too."

"I got a letter?” she asked.

"It’s on the counter," Dave said, gesturing. "The one with the Order of the Jevitan seal.”

Rienna stood and found the envelope on the counter. She coughed and cracked the seal, pulling out the letter and looking over the contents. "Albert wants to meet in a few days at the market to talk about my magic," she said.

"Ah. That's what I thought," Evie said. She stood with her plate. "Well. I guess there's no point in avoiding it. We'll be going to the market again. Maybe Mrs. Hendrick will have another lamb to sell." She sighed and set her dish in the sink before leaving.

Rienna set down the letter and gathered her own plate, adding it to the stack. She looked down at the cats. “Hey, Xio! Xia! How about we go do something else?” She didn't want to worry about Albert or the Order of the Jevitan right now.

Xia yawned and stood from her nap, waking her son who had been sleeping on her back. "Mmmrg?" he asked, standing with his eyes still closed. The fur on his neck stood up in strange positions and the rest of his fur wasn't much better. "Mowrt?"

Xia meowed and groomed his fur. He opened his eyes and yawned, showcasing his miniature fangs. His mother told him something and he popped up, suddenly awake. He stretched his little paws far forward and yawned again before jumping onto Rienna's foot enthusiastically. "Come!" He bounced away and out the door.

Rienna smiled in confusion and followed as Xia began trotting after her son, her fluffy silver tail raised high and swaying gently. They led her outside and back into the orchard. "What's happening? Where are we going?" Rienna asked, remembering how she had similarly followed the cats to The Suppression a month before .

"Just follow," Xio said, continuing deeper into the orchard.

They walked for a bit, the trees quiet around them. Sure enough, The Suppression soon came into view, sparkling pinks and purples through dark green leaves. The cats stopped below a tree with a twisted hole in the trunk.

"Xio," Rienna said cautiously. "What are we doing here?"

Xio bounced excitedly on his paws. "Let's go out! Just for small this time, but now know you it fine, out. So, we visit?" he said hopefully, ending with a long purr.

"I don't know if we should," Rienna said carefully. She wanted to go back out into the Alyene, too; she missed her full magic and the colors outside The Suppression. But that wasn't the problem. The problem was that she was definitely not allowed to, even if she hadn’t been told directly not to.

Xio pouted. "Please? Just hour time. Not scared, are you?"

"No, Xio," Rienna said as firmly as she could, trying to disguise her own longing for full access to her magic. "If my parents found out, we'd be in huge trouble."

Xia meowed and reached her front paws up Rienna's leg and batted her hand. "Please?" Xio said. "They not find out."

Rienna thought for a moment then looked up at the grey sky and sighed. "Fine, but I don't have the crystal with me at all moments. It's still in my backpack." She crouched down to scritch Xio's head. "Tell you what. If you go get the crystal, I'll bring you into the Alyene for one hour, alright?"

Xio nodded excitedly and bopped Rienna's ankle with his head. "Yes! Thank you! Watch, I be so fast! Like fish!" He darted back towards the house weaving between trees and singing, "Fish! So quick! Fish! Delish! Yum, yum, yum, yum, yum."

Rienna sat down next to Xia and pet her head. Xia purred happily. "Only an hour," Rienna insisted. "But, yeah. I get it. I feel sort of trapped without being able to use all of my magic." She sighed and leaned back against the tree. "I really hope I can help the Order of the Jevitan overthrow Sovereign Jenni,” she said, gently hitting the back of her head against the tree in a knock.

The wood creaked above her. She frowned. Trees didn't creak in Vieryen; there was no wind. If it was creaking, then one of its branches was going to snap. She quickly stood up and moved out of the way, picking Xia up and bringing her with. She watched the tree’s branches expectantly.

When nothing happened, her gaze dropped to the gnarled hole in the tree that the Order had used to store the crystal. Did it look wider? Had it responded to her hitting her head against the tree? She set Xia down and stepped closer. Yes it had! Huh.

She traced her finger around the pocket. How had they done it? They didn't have magic, and anyway, they were in The Suppression. Creating a permanent spell required more than just having magic. It required precision and mastery. She doubted even the Sovereign could make a spell like this, and she was hundreds of years old.

And there was no way another magic doer could go so long unnoticed.

Could they, though? Was there another sorcerer out there, already working with the Order? They would have overthrown the Sovereign by now if that was the case. How did they make this?

She had no idea, but she would ask Albert about it when they met in a few days.

"Muay ut ite!" a faint kitten voice said from a distance. "Mua gwa it!"

Xio came running up to Rienna, a purple crystal in his mouth. He plopped it wetly on the greyish grass. "I got it!" he exclaimed. "I is so stealth and saw by not!"

Rienna smiled warily down at the kitten and the slimy crystal. It glistened with kitten drool. "Good job," she said, a little bit disgusted. She gingerly picked it up and wiped it off with her shirt. "Wow, Xio. There's a lot of spit on it."

"It was in I mouth," Xio explained.

"Yes, I guess so," she said. “Okay, let's do this.” She brought up the crystal and traced a large circle in the barrier. The shining surface faded away and a blinding light shone through The Suppression. They hurried through and it closed behind them.

Immediately, Rienna felt The Suppression's effects on her magic disappear, like she’d been trying to walk in water and had finally reached the surface. Warm sunshine touched her face and a breeze ruffled her hair. She breathed in the clear, clean air gladly, smiling as she looked around.

She saw the tree she had first climbed up to escape the sun. She remembered kicking it when she couldn't find the crystal, and winced. She felt a little crazy now for how she’d reacted.

She walked over and sat in the shade of the tree. Xio bounded through the tall grass towards her, his head barely sticking above the blades of grass. He clamored up the tree and sat on a branch, staring down at her happily.

"I can talk good again!" he proclaimed. "Is so much better out heres."

Rienna smiled up at him. "I agree, Xio. This is totally worth it."

Xia meowed in confirmation from her spot in the sun. She rolled over so the curls of her fluffy belly could soak up the warmth. She squinted her eyes and stretched out her paws before curling them in like an otter. Or maybe she looked more like a potato.

Rienna pressed her hands to her mouth to suppress a squeal. "Xia! You're so cute! And so fluffy!" She really wanted to crawl over and stuff her face into the fluff, but she knew Xia would never forgive her.

Xia opened her eyes barely to glance at her. "Meowrgl," she said in part purr.

"She say she likes the warm sun," Xio said from above. "I say that this trees is very less comfy. The branch is too small for proper sleep. Rienna, catch me!"

"Xio!" Rienna protested. She held her hands above her head and caught him as he fell down. "Seriously?!"

"Yes! Now, let go into sun for cuddles."

"Oh, alright." Rienna stood, still holding the kitten and walked over to where Xia slept and sat back down. She leaned back and lied down, placing Xio on her stomach. "There," she said.

Xio purred drowsily. "Yay... Sun..." He closed his eyes and curled into a ball for sleep.

Rienna gently ran a finger along his tiny head and stared up at the sky. She brought an arm over her head to block off the sun so she could see. The sky was such a pretty blue…

She wished it was like this in Vieryen.

She yawned and glanced at the cats who were already fast asleep. She couldn't fall asleep in case she missed the hour deadline, but she couldn't move in worry of disturbing the cats. She closed her eyes and yawned again.

She wouldn’t fall asleep, but she could at least enjoy the relaxing sunlight.

Enchantments

They went outside The Suppression every day after that. Sometimes after lunch or sometimes after breakfast. But never more than a couple hours; they didn't want to be caught, after all.

They probably wouldn't be able to go today, though. Rienna had to go to the market with her mother so she could meet with Albert. It was not especially exciting.

Rienna wore a nice skirt and shirt and rode the horses with her mother to get to town. They weren't selling anything this time, so they didn't need the wagon. She rode Taka and her mother rode Lin. They were both basic brown quarter horses with practical magics having to do with speed and stamina. They were pretty much the same, so it wouldn't have made much sense for Rienna to favor riding Taka, but she did. She felt like she connected better with her than with Lin.

The horses were part of a breeding stock meant specifically for travel and hauling goods. Somehow, the Sovereign had found a way to control what sort of magic an animal developed, even though it was not usually a trait passed down through generations. There were other horses bred for aesthetic purposes. Like paints and dapples that cost twice as much despite being less capable for work.

"What do you think he'll ask you about?" Evie asked as they walked down the deserted road.

"I guess probably about what I can do. He wants to know if I can help bring down Sovereign Jenni," Rienna said. She worried that he would expect her to be as powerful as the Sovereign. If he does, she thought, then he's an idiot. She's got centuries more practice and probably still has plenty of crystals.

A cloud of dirt was kicked up from behind, trailing after them in a cloud. "I don't like the idea of you going up against her," Evie said. "I'm sorry, but she's way stronger than you."

"I know that," Rienna said indignantly. "I'm saying that he may think I can."

"That's ridiculous. He can't send an eleven year old against an ageless witch."

"I know! But he seems to think I'd be instrumental in some way," Rienna said. If I thought I could take her out, I would, she thought.

She turned her head away from her mother and stared out at the farms beyond. There were not very many different kinds of plants in Vieryen due to the poor conditions. Anyone farming either needed to choose an easy growing plant or be willing to spend a fortune keeping the plants alive.

The plots they were passing were of the former. Potatoes. Potatoes practically grew without you asking them to, compared to other crops at least. They grew underground and didn't need a lot of water to keep alive. They could be harvested year long if you planned it right, and were liked by all. The only problem was that they had to be sold cheap because so many people grew them.

It wasn't like how it was for apples. Rienna's family was the only one who grew apples for a living, and it worked well for them. They weren't rich, but they were better off than some business owners in the main town, which was more than most other farmers could say.

"Just don't let him think you're that powerful, okay, hon?" Evie finally said.

Rienna sighed inwardly. "I won't," she promised. "Don't worry."

They arrived at the market ten minutes before Rienna was supposed to meet Albert. She walked around with her mom as she waited, helping gather groceries. They stuck to buying from local producers and avoided the stands giving out bags of food from the Alyene in exchange for the weekly tickets every family got.

They hadn't used any of theirs since Rienna had explained the origin of the food. They would expire soon.

"Susan! How are you today?" Evie asked a woman standing behind a counter in a meat shop.

"Hi, Evie. Hello, Rienna," Susan waved.

"Hello, Mrs. Hendrick," Rienna returned quietly.

"Oh, I'm alright," Susan said with a smile, responding to Evie's question. "How are you?"

"Quite well, actually. I'm here to buy some ground lamb. We're making casseroles tonight."

"Exciting! One pound or two?" Susan asked, writing something on a note pad.

"Two, please. And if you have any of your goats' milk available, we'll take a bottle of that, too," Evie said.

"Two pounds and a bottle of goat milk. Jeez, Evie. I swear this is the second time this week I've seen you. I usually don't have the pleasure!" Susan laughed.

"We have a guest," she said, nodding.

"My, that's unusual," Mrs. Hendrick said, finishing off her note. "I'll be right back with your stuff. It'll be twenty silver coins." She hurried off behind a door with her notepad, leaving Evie to gather her money.

A moment later, she came back out with a packet of meat and a bottle of milk. She gathered the silver coins into a box behind the counter. "Here ya go. Thanks for coming by."

Evie smiled and deposited the food into her basket. "Anytime. I'm glad to get my food from someone other than those soldiers."

"Oh? How's that?" Susan asked.

Evie shrugged and smiled again. "Not much to it. Just think it's not natural, getting our food from magic plants and animals. It's almost scary, you know?" she said. "Besides, they're keeping the money from the rest of us. Best to support the people who actually work for the food."

Susan nodded. "That's so true," she said thoughtfully. "When'd you get so wise, Evie?" she joked.

Evie just laughed. "I'll be seeing you Susan." She and Rienna walked out and the bell on the door chimed above them.

Rienna looked up at her mother. "That was pretty good."

"You think so?" Evie asked, glancing down at her with a smile.

"Yeah, it was perfect," Rienna promised.

"Thanks."

They continued walking around the market, buying food and occasionally mentioning the soldiers selling food from outside of Vieryen. They finally saw Albert waiting at a fountain two minutes before the designated meeting time.

He saw them coming and waved with a smile. "Evie! Rienna! Wonderful! I'm glad you came." He shook each of their hands. "Come, Rienna, I have a table at that quaint little bakery just over there. Don't worry, Evie, she will be back in just ten minutes, I'm sure."

Rienna waved to her mother as she followed him into the bakery. They went to a small table in the corner and sat down. Albert nodded to the person behind the counter and gestured to the tabletop. A moment later they brought out a small flat bread to their table. Albert handed them a few coins in thanks.

"Thank you for meeting with me Rienna. Please have some flatbread. It's quite nice," Albert said, taking a piece and putting it on the small plate in front of him. Rienna did the same, making sure he had started eating before she did. "Did you talk to your parents about the tea?" he started.

"Yeah. They said they would try. We hadn't actually made apple tea before, only apple juice," Rienna said after a moment. She had completely forgotten about the matter after she’d vaguely mentioned it to her parents the day of the meeting.

"Wonderful. If you just want to heat up apple juice, that is fine, too. We'll just say it's tea and call it a day." He wiped his fingers on a napkin and became serious for a moment. "You remember what we were really to talk about, yes?"

Rienna nodded with a mouth full of bread. Of course she remembered, she'd be crazy if she didn't.

Albert smiled. "Good. I was wondering if you could tell me what you can do?"

Rienna swallowed. "Not much inside The Suppression, really," she said carefully. "I can create lights and move objects. But it all quickly depletes my magic," she added.

Albert nodded politely. "Yes. That is problematic. What about outside The Suppression though? Where magic can run wild. I've heard of what you did to the fairyeld that day. Shot four people at once, yes?"

"Yeah… Something like that. It used almost all of my energy, though," Rienna said meaningfully. She felt like there was something she was forgetting to say.

"Hmm." Albert took another bite of bread and chewed thoughtfully before swallowing. "How could we make it so you can cast more?"

"I don't think that's how it works," Rienna said warily. "I can save up magic, but there's no way to speed it up."

"Can you permanently enchant objects?" he tried.

"No," Rienna said. But now she remembered her question. "But, um, how were you able to make the crystals hide in trees that released them at the right sequence. That seems like magic to me."

Albert's eyes lit up. "That's it, Rienna! You can study with Christia! Are you free on Tuesday to meet with her? She lives not too far from here. Near the university." He beamed.

"I'm sorry. What? Who's Christia?" Rienna asked, puzzled.

"Oh, sorry, Rienna. I was getting ahead of myself. This is just too exciting," he said apologetically. "Christia is an alchemist. She works at the University as a professor. In her free time she has been experimenting with the crystals and their powder. That's how we managed to get trees holding crystals!" he explained excitedly. "If you two work together, I'm sure you'll accomplish great things. Are you up for it?"

Rienna started to get a little excited herself. Finding a way to permanently enchant things would be a game changer. Life could be so much easier! Like brooms that swept for you! Or sheets that made themselves after you got out of bed! Actually, that sounded kind of creepy.

She nodded. "Yes. I think that would be great! Tuesday, you said?"

"Yes! She works in the mornings, but her afternoon will be free, I'm sure. She's in the third closest house to the school, I believe. You'll probably be able to tell which one it is anyway. I'll send word to her as soon as possible!" He stood and brushed off any crumbs. "Thank you, Rienna. It's been a pleasure. Please take the rest of the flatbread. You can share it with your family. Have a great day!"

"Thank you," Rienna said and he walked off. She stood up and gathered the bread in the wax paper beneath it. She thanked the person behind the counter on her way out and eyed the chocolate muffins wistfully as she left the bakery.

She ate another piece of bread as she returned to the fountain in search of her mother. She was right where she had left her, sitting at the edge of the water with the two horses and the basket.

"Mom! I'm back! I brought some bread," Rienna called.

Evie looked up and smiled, slight worry in her features. "Already! How was it?"

"He wants me to meet with an alchemist called Christia," Rienna said "I think he is hoping to enchant stuff. I don't know what for, though. Maybe weapons?"

Evie frowned and situated the reins on the horses. "And when would this be?" She handed Rienna Taka’s reins and mounted Lin, basket in hand.

"Tuesday," Rienna supplied. She used the fountain edge as a step stool to get on her horse. "In the afternoon. She works at the University, I guess."

"Hmm," her mother said. She kicked her heels and they began walking down the cobblestone back towards the farms. The horses' hooves clicked loudly against the stones. "Do you want to go?"

"Yes. I think so. I'd like to learn if I can enchant something permanently."

"What about your light? Isn't that permanent?"

They turned and the fountain could no longer be seen. "It slowly fades. And light is really easy," Rienna explained. "Is it alright if I go?"

Her mother sighed. "Of course. But in return…" she said with a conspiring smile. "You'll help me make dinner each night until then."

Rienna grinned back. "It's a deal."