The Book of Terrus: Rising Tides, Falling Stars

Chapter 16 - The White Fox and the All-Seer

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Daybreak in Hashodi saw Jath, Yidu, Lhara, and Reyson making their way through the frost-slicked streets, following after Zhaiden like goslings after a mother goose. Their breath came in chilly little puffs of white, the northern air rushing crisp and sharp into their lungs. Despite the cold, green still surrounded the city on all sides. Hashodi stretched along the bottom of an ancient gorge, carved over centuries by the swift waters of the Wengdu River. Here, approaching the oldest parts of the city, the pines which sheltered Hashodi's southernmost entrance grew intrepid, stretching up the rocky sides of the gorge until it seemed impossible that their roots should find any purchase. Mist hung low overhead, shrouding the ridges of the rocky cradle – long eroded by time into rounded, almost eerie shapes – in which Hashodi sat. Birds nested along these mossy walls; dark shapes which alternated between perching by their holes and gliding across the gorge on silent wings.

At the front of the group, Jath and Zhaiden were speaking in low voices. Lhara and Yidu walked side-by-side, clutching their cloaks about them for warmth, leaving Reyson to bring up the rear. Lhara's arms were covered in goosebumps, but it was only partially due to chill.

So much was at stake here; the fates of all the people she had come to know and love since leaving Trosk now hung upon a single meeting with a stranger. This Vállin White-Fox was an enigma. Although Sonak and the twins had spoken more or less well of him, the Regent of the North held incredible power over the fate of Goran. With over sixty-thousand people living within the bounds of The Night Forest, northerners made up a considerable portion of the Gorian populace. Only the clans of the Hanara Desert could possibly do more to sway the balance of power against Mahir. If Lord Vállin was loyal to Mahir though...

Over the course of the last few days, Lhara had slowly but surely been coming to the realization of their party's true purpose. The only way to know if the Regent of the North could be swayed to siding with the rebellion was to ask. There simply wasn't time for any elaborate games of intention, or otherwise playing coy about their Factionist ties. The four of them were very much the proverbial canary in the coal mine. If Lord Vállin could be swayed to join with Undor against the capital, then he would be. If not, then Lhara wasn't naïve enough to imagine that they would simply be sent along their merry way back to Moaan.

'No wonder Konnah and her family didn't want to be seen entering the city with us.' Lhara sighed aloud, breathing out a long stream of misty breath.

Yidu's hand caught and held hers. The younger girl's dark eyes gleamed unusually bright beneath her hood. "Hey. It'll be alright, you'll see."

"It's hard not to be nervous," said Lhara.

"Too bad we don't have Lieutenant Gideo here with us. Or Madame Kiiss. Either one of those two could probably just walk in and charm the pants straight off the Lord Regent!"

Despite the tension, Lhara couldn't help but snort and laugh.

"You mean like what's happening with those two?"

She wiggled her eyebrows toward Zhaiden and Jath, who were murmuring together so intently that their hair – snow white and raven black – nearly touched as they walked. In contrast to Lhara's anxieties over their present destination, a smile could just be seen at the corner of Jath's mouth as he turned his head to speak to Zhaiden.

"Jealous?" asked Yidu.

"Not at all! It's nice to see Jath with a friend, especially someone he knew from before. And before you say it, no, that whole thing in Blue Stone with Darenel Tremaris does not count."

"Did Jath ever meet your brother? The one you said you were trying to rescue from the royal army?"

Lhara winced. "No, Jath and Tarun never met. At least, not as far as I know. Tarun's very different from Jath, I don't know what the two of them would make of each other. Tarun...he doesn't make friends easily."