Discoveries

33

The silence that followed was deadly.

Sabrina had killed her own mother.

The best warrior in centuries.

Her mother.

Did anyone else know this? And did they know she'd tried blood? Maybe she'd secretly Turned too! Or maybe it was actually Sabrina's mum here and Sabrina was dead?

"You're the only one I've ever told, and I would appreciate if you would keep it to yourself. Yes, they know I tried it, and healed me from wanting more; it's addictive. Much worse than The Herb or whatever else people smoke. It disappoints me that you judge me straight away, definitely when your thoughts're still slipping," Sabrina said, taking her head in her hands.

I blushed and felt ashamed of myself.

"I shouldn't have told you. What's done's done, so I hope you do not tell a soul. You may leave now."

"I won't tell anyone, and I'm sorry to have doubted you. See you tomorrow," I said, standing up and walking to my tree.

Oh Gods.

What had I gotten into? What was this place really? I now understood a thing I'd noticed recently; there was joy and the Niandori were happy, but a sadness silently snuck through. It was because almost all knew someone who'd Turned. Who'd died one or fighting one. Her marks were everywhere.

Not for the first time I found myself wandering who She was. Her story, Her motives, what She really looked like, no one knew.

Would I ever meet Her?

Quite possible, as I was to live a thousand years and She was my enemy. I wondered what our first meeting would be like. What She would be like.

The Rose, who was waiting in my study, interrupted my thoughts.

"Alyssa, what took you so long? Never mind. Today we will study a bit of history, and for that we must go to The Library. Come," she said, beckoning me.

Together we walked over to that great banyan. It was truly magnificent, with all those thousands of years of growth shaping it to an artwork of tree and root, forming halls and passages, several floors and a deep, underground Hall of Sileron, the windows of which could be seen peeking up above the ground.

Daru led us inside and to a part I hadn't been in yet. It was a very large, round space with a ceiling a hundred or more meters high. As a matter of fact, there wasn't a ceiling at all at the end of the long, wooden cylinder. Just a pure blue sky, hidden by a few leafy branches.

"This, child, is the heart of the Great Banyan," Daru told me. "Once, this was the only tree that stood. The Library was small, with the books of those times; now our most precious eldest. Here the books from the beginning of time have always lain, and hopefully always will. You're here for one of the last books to have been added; The War of Loreyan. A war of ten years, with many battles, of which the most important is the Battle of Loraan, fought not so far from here. The battle that decided so much for us Niandori. But you must read it for yourself, child. Here," she walked over to a shelf and pulled out a heavy, leather-bound book with gold inscriptions, in Marlang of course. I could now read it fluently and also perfectly separate it from Lenish. It was just like having two mother tongues than one can easily switch. I mostly spoke Marlang these days, as I hadn't been in Lena lately.

I took the book and experienced that moment when something's lighter than you expected so you give more power and it shoots up a little.

The first page was blank, the second bore the title and the third was an index, all in swirly capitals. With the fourth the tale began.