Page 78 of Wilds of Wonder
Aron and Driscoll wandered past a few houses, their roofs partially caved in, and stepped inside as Driscoll chattered away to Aron.
“You know, Wolf Man, you’re not so bad.”
“I think that’s a compliment,” Aron was saying before they disappeared through the doorway.
I crouched down next to Emory. “Find anything?” I asked.
She trailed a finger over the bricks she’d laid aside. “No, nothing of much significance. Though I’m sick of this black dust.” Sheheld up her finger, the black specks glittering on it. “What in the bloody spirits is it?”
I wished I knew, but this dust was as much a mystery to me as everything else in this land.
I felt a tap on my shoulder and jumped, then turned to see El behind us, signing something.
I knew the language. It had originally been used in the Old World as a secret form of communication between the Seven Spirits that eventually got documented by scholars. When our direct ancestors founded Arathia, they came across the texts with the documented language. We’d adapted it, using it for those who could benefit from it rather than as a secret form of communication. I’d taught myself over the years, using it to communicate with my sister. A way for us to talk in the presence of our father without him knowing what we were saying. Mainly it was so when my father was berating her or lecturing her, I could sign to her, make her laugh, distract her. It infuriated my father. It was my own way to be rebellious without directly rebelling.
El signed again. “We stop for little while. Then we go.”
I nodded. “We just wanted to look at a few things here. It’s not everyday we get to see a destroyed village in Shiraeth. We don’t get to see a lot of things here.”
El just scowled, which seemed like a permanent expression she wore.“Be careful what you look at. I once looked too closely at something and it foretold a future I wasn’t ready to see.”
Emory gave me a questioning look, and I translated what El said.
“What did you look at that told you your future?” Emory asked, eyes alight with curiosity.
El signed her answer dismissively.“A crystal blue lake.”
“A lake,” I told Emory.
“What was the future?” she asked El, but El was already crouching, tracing her finger through the dust and ignoring the question.
Emory glanced back down, then squinted at something through the pile of rock. “Wait a minute. I think I see something.”
I saw it, too, a glint of silver through the rubble.
We both grabbed brick after brick while El sat on the ground beside the rubble, watching us intently. I winced as the sharp edge of a brickcaught on my hand, scraping against my wound. Emory stood, bending over and wiping away the black dust that covered the object. I still couldn’t tell exactly what it was. Emory leaned closer, grabbing it and lifting it out slowly. She kept her hands on the outside of the object, her touch light, careful not to damage it.
“It’s a painting,” she said, holding out the rectangular-framed canvas.
She was right. Scratches dragged down the front so it was hard to make out the image. Emory lay it on the ground and we both studied it. The background matched the twilight sky above us, purple and black twined together with glittering specks of silver dotting the canvas. A faint ribbon of green stretched over the top of the painting. A group of people stood on grass, but deep gashes made it hard to see who the people were or what they were doing.
I glanced up and El signed,“It’s the royal family. King and queen of Shiraeth with their children.”
I repeated what El said to Emory, and her eyes flicked back to the painting. “Yes, that makes sense. I can see the faint background of the castle in the distance. And the swans.” She pointed to what looked like feathered birds sitting in a pond next to the family, though so much of the paint had peeled away, it was hard to tell. “The king of the star court was known for his beautiful swans.” She brushed some wisps of that white-blonde hair from her forehead, misted with sweat.
I’d never heard that. “Swans?” I repeated.
“Oh yes,” Emory said with a faint smile. “The king loved them. His favorite animal. Every party he threw, he’d make sure to have a little pond where the swans could be on display for everyone to see. They were his most prized possession.”
El listened intently, eyes misting over, then she blinked, gaze hardening.
“I read about it in the history books,” Emory said. “Apparently the obsession started when the king was taking a stroll through his court one day. He happened upon a pond full of the lovely creatures. He was enamored with them, with their graceful, long necks and soft downy feathers. The swans belonged to a man who owned that land, The king bought all the swans from the man and hired him as the caretaker forthem. That caretaker worked for the king for twenty years, became his good friend... up until the Shadow War.”
“The history books lie,”El signed, fire in her eyes.“You two know nothing of the star court or the royal family.”She looked away, jaw locked.“We need to go.”
Emory and I glanced at each other as El stalked off to find Driscoll and Aron.
“Well, she’s pleasant.” Emory glanced down at the pocket watch hanging around her neck as it counted backward, ever closer to the twelve.
