CHAPTER TWENTY
Relics
I took Will and Mira to every reading of the Winter Sagas the next day. I asked every sage who recited the poems about where I could find more information about the philosophers, and ended up back at the entrance to Jans's classroom. Just standing there with the smoke from the candles coming out made my eyes water and my nose congest. I could barely stand to even be there.
"Which books do you want to look at?" Will asked. "We'll go get them. It'll save your eyes the trouble."
I took a step back. "Ones about Baldr, Giles, Ignes—the major philosophers. I want to know what they were like, so I can know what they'd do. Maybe the Angels have done something like this before, and we can figure it out." My mother and Galen would know more about this, but they weren't sharing with me. So I had to find out for myself. "You search here, and I'll meet up with you later."
"Will do," Mira said.
I left them to the smoke-filled classroom and headed back to my room. I closed the door and sat on my bed, pulling out my father's old journal. I turned to a page I'd read before. It was from my father's second expedition to the forest with my mother. It was romantic thinking of the two of them searching the forest for ancient relics.
"Andreya and I are both so similar, but in some ways different. She smiles with each new discovery like a child with a new toy. There's a sense of wonder about her that I'm still struggling to capture. This was my family business, after all, and she came into it all on her own. She has such passion for her work that it's hard to tell when she's happy about our job and when it's about me. What does she feel about me? She says she finds me 'fascinating.' I guess that's a good sign."
I kept reading, smiling at my father's romance. Was that what I felt for Galen? He was so dedicated to his cause that I couldn't tell when he smiled at me because I was helping him save the world and when he smiled because he liked to look at my face. But no, he was already betrothed. Maybe that's why I couldn't stop thinking about him.
Was there a way to pry him away from his family obligations? If he saw me as someone who shared his beliefs, then maybe he could love me—maybe he could love me so much that he'd turn his back on his family and Danelle and just follow his heart. I blushed thinking about it. What a stupid dream. He probably never even thought about me. I was sure he'd be shocked to know I thought about him like that. But what could I say? That was just how I felt.
I kept reading: "Last week we found another relic. We had to run some tests first to find out what it did. She didn't eat for a whole day. I had to remind her to breathe. Of course, with what we've found so far, we can change the world. So I guess she isn't overreacting. Maybe I'm the one who isn't reacting enough. Like Andreya says, never trust yourself with great power. And never trust anyone else."
The journal ended there. I had pored through its pages, trying to find insights into why the Angels would be here, and what sin my parents committed. There seemed to be more relics in Vormund tower than anywhere else I'd seen, and if they'd used them to fight the Angels, that might be the reason they'd won. I'd always heard that the relics were the last remnants of the Angels' power given to man. Had my mother rediscovered the power that men had before the War of the Angels?
No, of course not, I thought. She still needed me to fight the Angels that appeared now. Or was she even telling me the truth? I wanted to be a good daughter and follow her orders, but I itched to know more. I needed to find a place to belong, a place where I knew what I was supposed to do. What did I need to do to show her I was good enough for Vormund?
I shut the journal and realized I already knew. Mikael. He'd somehow known why she'd sealed her tower, he had a key to my father's hidden journal. He knew of my powers when no one else did. Was he a spy for the sages, or one of my mother's agents, testing my loyalty? Either way, I had to tell her about him.
I headed up to the tower, to see if the guards would let me in. They wouldn't. On my way out, I met Galen. He smiled at me. "I didn't expect to find you here. Practicing extra during Midwinter?"
"I was looking for my mother, actually. Does she work with any bordermen? There's one who keeps talking to me."
Galen laughed. "Are you sure it's because of your mother? He could be drawn to you for other reasons."
"Very funny," I said, rolling my eyes. At least Galen thought I was the type who would draw boys rather than repel them. "His name is Mikael. He seems to know a lot about me, so I was wondering if he was a friend of yours."
"Mikael Skovsson?" Galen frowned. "He works as our intermediary with the border patrol. Come to think of it, he does ask about you sometimes." He narrowed his eyes. "Do you think he suspects anything?"
"I don't think so." I wasn't sure if I should tell Galen first. A part of me wondered if my mother would just think he did all the work, and I hadn't contributed anything. Now that I knew Mikael worked with the Vormund Order, it made sense that maybe he was spying on my mother's conversations.
"Good. I like him. It would be a shame if we had to get rid of him." The way he said it sent a chill down the back of my neck. If Galen thought someone threatened our mission, what would he do?
"Okay." I turned to leave. "Are we going back to practicing after Midwinter?"
"The very next day. If the snow is too thick, we'll have to spend most of our time inside. How are you enjoying the holidays in Kant Vakt, by the way?"
"It's great," I said. "I love the sagas."
Galen stroked his chin. "So do I. Of course, we'll have sagas written about us someday. Vormund is going to do what heroes in those ancient tales never dreamed of."
"What's that?" I asked.
He smiled, but it was paternal, like a father keeping a treat out of a child's grasp. "You'll see."
I thought about what he said all that day. When Will and Mira brought back a few books about the philosophers, I flipped through them as we sat together in the mead hall, preoccupied by the thoughts of scheming Angels and Weapons of Power. I caught a glimpse of Jans wandering the halls, so I went out and caught up with him right as he was entering his classroom.
"Jans?" I said.
He smiled at me. "Hello, Kaybree. What can I do for you?"
"Oh, nothing," I said. I couldn't be too direct, especially asking about something heretical. "Just wondering how you're liking Midwinter in Kant Vakt. It must be different in a big city if you're used to being out in one of the northern outposts."
"Quite different," he said, smiling at the scene outside, the bustling people and vendors and soldiers walking to and fro. "I do love Midwinter, though, wherever it is. So much life, so much beauty."
I rubbed my hands for warmth. "It just looks like a bunch of people buying stuff," I said.
"It's much more than that. This is a celebration of survival. Thousands of years of relying on God's guidance to surmount obstacles and overcome selfishness, when all instinct would prompt us otherwise." He shook his head. "Forgive me. Too long spent indoors causes me to wax philosophical. I do not mean to bore you."
"Not at all," I said, walking closer to the window. A pair of Knights strode by us in the hall. "I'm interested in the philosophers and the Angels. Though sometimes it seems like the Sagas don't tell the whole story. What were they really like? Were they people, like us?"
Jans's eyes glazed over, like he was gazing into the distance. "Traditional poetry can only capture a certain kind of story. We lose the everyday details, the personal struggles, the doubts, the fears. We only get a heroic narrative that fits into our view of history. Yes, there was much more to it. But who could keep an accurate record for eight centuries?"
I saw his point. How much did we think we knew about the Angels that was twisted by time? "So maybe that's why we don't understand the Angel attacks," I said. "They're attacking because of a reason we've never considered."
"Perhaps," Jans said. "I suppose I should return to my preparations. I hope to see you at the next reading. You don't seem to have missed one yet."
; I smiled back. "I'll try." I waved to him and walked out into the hall. The swish of robes and clank of swords and armor stopped me in mid-step. A bald, robed figure strode into Jans's classroom with a pair of Knights of Valir on his heels. Father Traum. I felt a chill, glad that he hadn't seen me.
"Father?" Jans's voice said. "What's happened?"
The urgency in his tone made me curious, and I crept closer to listen from the doorway. Traum's nasally voice was triumphant. "We have her. Unlawful possession of holy relics is the charge, but we are working on finding information about the tower."
I paled. They were talking about my mother.
"I see," Jans said. "What of the others?"
"Valkegaard was with her," Traum said. "But it seems Henri Svenson slipped beneath our notice, with several of the soldiers. We see so little of them here that they could be walking among us, and we wouldn't know it. They blend with the peasantry."
"And the tower?"
"We are marching toward it as we speak. Where is the girl? She may be able to tell us something."
I held my breath. The Jans I knew wouldn't let them harm me. Of course, the Jans I knew was wearing a mask of flesh and fancy speech. "She was just speaking with me," he said. "You should find her nearby. But I feel that the carrot would be more effective with her than the rod."
I took the cue and tiptoed away from the door. The farther I got, the faster I walked, until by the time I could see the entrance chamber up ahead, I was almost skipping. Thank the Almighty the servants didn't notice. They went on with their duties, oblivious to the frantic girl rushing past them and glancing behind her back every four steps.
I didn't return to my room, but instead went to the hidden courtyard where Galen and I practiced. I slipped past the branches into the secluded, overgrown area, taking refuge from the wind next to the massive, bowed oak. My heart was pounding, and it took me a few minutes of closing my eyes and taking deep breaths to calm down. They arrested my mother. I couldn't believe Traum had been so bold. What was worse, I knew that he'd only received the lead about the relics from Jans because I had been the one to tell about it.
How could I have missed that? I'd tried so hard to sneak around and keep Traum away from me that I'd set my mother and Galen up for disaster. Not only did the mad crusader have them, but now Jans had free access to Vormund tower.
Or did he? I stood, brushing dirt and ice from the back of my coat, and rubbed warmth into my hands. Jans had asked about the tower, and Traum had said they were on their way now. Could I make it there before them? Or could I sneak in behind them, to see what Jans did once he was inside?
I crept toward the doors to the sagekeep and stepped inside, grateful to be out of the wind and snow. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up as I looked down the hallways. Empty for now. I raced toward the steps that would lead to the tower, hoping I wasn't already too late.
"There you are."
I spun at the sound of the voice and flinched. Danelle stood there in the hall, hands on hips, wearing a fur-lined ermine cloak and blue v-neck dress inlaid with golden embroidery. She looked like she was on her way to a ball. "Hi, Danelle," I said, glancing around. "Survive the Midwinter."
She stepped forward and took hold of my arm. Her nails bit into my flesh; she was stronger than she looked. "I was hoping I'd be the first to tell you," she said, a smile budding on her rose-shaped lips. "Your mother has finally gotten what was coming to her. She's been arrested for heresy."
"Heresy?" I asked, stalling for a way out. I couldn't transform here or use the power of the relics, and with my normal strength, I wasn't sure I could get out of Danelle's grip. Even if I could, running away would just make me look more guilty.
"Preaching that man had the right to use the powers of the relics for our own use. They are strictly forbidden by Valir doctrine, and saying that she could protect man from the Angels' judgments was in direct conflict with the sages. Trying to receive the glory for herself and not the Almighty's rightly appointed stewards."
"Have they found any relics?" I asked. "They must have gone into the tower."
Danelle started walking in the direction of Vormund tower. "We'll see," she said. "Don't try to run away. I know you're guilty too, and I won't let you escape." So much for sneaking into the tower. We passed through the entrance chamber and into another corridor, with her pulling at my arm and striding along with a determined scowl on her face. How could I convince her to let me go?
"Oh, good, you've found her," said another voice. It was Mira's. Mira and Will stood in front of Danelle, blocking her way.
Danelle frowned and curled her lip. "You're in my way."
Mira spread her hands. "We're sorry," she said. "But we've been looking all over the sagekeep for her. Father Traum wanted us to find her to bring her to the trial."
Danelle's eyes lit up at the mention of a trial, but they narrowed as she looked at Mira. "He sent you?" She made a disgusted face at Will. "Stand aside and walk with us if you must, but I will see this trial myself." Her grip tightened on my arm. "I wouldn't want to miss the end of the Witch hunt." My thoughts were spinning; a trial, already? Had they already prepared the charges of heresy beforehand, and were only now finding the evidence to start a trial?
Mira nodded. "That's fine," she said, moving aside and walking alongside us. "You're welcome to come with us. I'm just surprised that you would, considering how you feel about Lady Andreya."
Danelle paused and looked over at her. "The trial is to accuse Andreya Staalvoss of heresy, is it not? That's a spectacle I'd want a front-row seat to."
Mira gave her a puzzled look. "But this is a preliminary defense trial. They won't hold the real one until after this one, and that will have to be in Valir. This one determines if she's guilty of heresy in the first place, and the only witnesses testifying will be in her defense. Anyone can watch, of course, but any nobles who come will be there to defend her. Will and I are from low enough houses that it won't look like we're Lady Staalvoss's benefactor, but if a representative of House Ambros were there, the sages might think something different."
Danelle gave her a blank look. "A what?"
"Preliminary defense trial," Mira said, taking on her monotonous lecturer's tone. "It was part of the reforms Valir passed in the Second Great Council of 730 to prevent them from being swamped with heresy trials. Official Valir policy is that noble houses of higher status than the accused stay out of them unless they want to make a statement on their behalf." She held up a small book with its title worn away. "You can look it up if you want."
Danelle's eyes widened, and she let go of my arm. She made a shooing motion. "I suppose you lowborn are useful for something after all," she said. She shot me a look before she turned to go. "But don't expect I'll miss the bonfire." She stalked away, her heels clicking loudly against the floor.
Mira took my arm and led me down the hall. Will, who had been silent and pale up to this point, exhaled and waved us into a classroom. It was dark, the only light coming from the window. "That was close," he said. "I guess you heard?"
"My mother was arrested for having certain relics," I said. "Jans and Father Traum were going to break into the tower and see what was inside."
"They can't get in," Mira said. "The tower has been sealed again, and the Vormund soldiers have scattered. They have guards posted there, though, so we have to keep you away."
"Wait . . . you're not taking me to the trial?"
Mira broke out into a smile. "No, of course not. But we had to say something to get you away from Danelle."
"And you made that whole thing up?"
She shrugged. "It wasn't hard. There really was a Second Great Council in 730, and laws were discussed, but there's no such thing as a preliminary defense trial."
"What if Danelle looks it up?"
"You expect her to read a book?"
I laughed at the thought. Quiet, unassuming Mira was turning out to be a little more devious than I'd expected.
Wi
ll waved me over. "Let's get out of here for now. We can go to the Bard Song and lie low until we have a plan."
"To do what?" I asked, but as I spoke the words, I already knew. We had to find a way to contact the members of Vormund or get into that tower before Jans did. Whatever the Angel wanted to find, and whatever evil my mother had unearthed, it was in there. Without my mother and Galen here, we had to do this ourselves.