He blinked at her, as if he wasn't certain he had heard her correctly, then instead of answering, asked her a question. 'Where does the energy go when it flows into a node?'
She was used to that now; if she didn't know the answer, he asked her a question that would make her see the answer for herself, rather than simply telling her. It had been infuriating, at first, but she had to admit that the answers stuck with her much better when she had to deduce them for herself. 'It flows right back out on another - oh! Now why didn't I see that before?' She shook her head, annoyed. 'How could I be so stupid? The difference between a node and a Heartstone is that the energy doesn't flow out of a Heartstone. It all stays there. I can't imagine why I didn't see that; it's like a lot of rivers flowing into a sea, and who ever heard of a river flowing out of a sea?'
'Well, at least it does not flow out on another ley-line,' Darkwind amended. 'Power is taken from a Heartstone, of course, or it would build up past the point where it could be contained. It is used to provide the power for all the things in the Vale that require such power. But that is our great secret, the construction of such a thing. Even had Falconsbane succeeded in stealing the proto-Heartstone, I do not think he could have turned it into a real one. He would have to have given it an outflowing ley-line, however small, and all he would have had would have been, in the end, no more than an exceptionally strong node. Not that such a node would not have granted him great power! But it would not have been the power of a Heartstone, which has no known equal to my people. It is the fact that a Heartstone has no such way to relieve the pressure of the contained power that makes a Heartstone so very powerful.'
'But the one in Haven now is a Heartstone, and not a node, right?' she asked anxiously.
He shrugged. 'It appears so, yes, but I cannot be certain until I can view it myself. At the moment it is a guess, an assumption, based on some signs we can See at this great distance. If it is - well, that means that whatever force sent it there knows how to create Heartstones, or cause a waiting one to settle. And what that could portend, I do not know.'
'I don't either,' she replied. Although that was not strictly true, since the force that had sent the proto- Heartstone to Haven instead of the new k'Sheyna Vale had come from the North of Valdemar, and in the North of Valdemar was the Forest of Sorrows....
'Well, Firesong has cloistered himself away for a day and a night, to rebuild his own energy levels, so we cannot ask him,' Darkwind said with a hint of unease in his blue eyes. 'I suspect he would only shrug and look mysterious, though.'
'Probably,' Elspeth chuckled, trying to remove the unease. 'You know what a showman he is, he can't even drink a cup of chava without making a production out of it. At any rate, in two days we'll have some of our answers, when we get to k'Treva, and we can consult the mages there. The rest can wait until we reach Valdemar. Certainly whatever is under Haven can wait until then.' They had all decided that the first step on their journey would be to return to k'Treva with Firesong. Elspeth had hoped that this would make the change from Darkwind's home in the Vale to Valdemar less of a shock. Only Firesong could create the Gate for this journey, but the Gate would not have to be held open for so great a span of time, so only one Adept would be needed. And while the creation of a Gate was no small task, it was one that Firesong had undertaken so many times that with due preparation, he would emerge into his home Vale in fairly good shape, not as drained and exhausted as Darkwind. Besides, once there, he would have his own Heartstone, keyed to the mages of k'Treva, to draw upon to replenish his resources.
Darkwind remained silent after that last comment, and Elspeth wondered now if she should have left all mention of Valdemar out of the conversation. She had been very reluctant to discuss anything past their departure from k'Treva, and she had sensed a corresponding reluctance in Darkwind. He was going with her; that much was absolutely certain. But she would no longer be simply Elspeth k'Sheyna k'Valdemar at that point; she would be a princess, the Heir, and on her home ground, with responsibilities to Valdemar that went far beyond personal feelings. For that matter, she hadn't thought much about those responsibilities of late.
I should. I need to weigh them all out, and decide what is important and what isn't. And what I am actually able to do. And, a little reluctantly, she decided one other thing. I need to talk to Gwena. If there's anyone that can discuss where my responsibilities end and stupid customs begin, it's her. She nibbled her lip uneasily. Gwena had been very agreeable lately; maybe too much so. On the other hand, the Companion had sworn she was not going to attempt to manipulate her Chosen any more.
But did she say she would do so any less? Hmm....On the other hand, she admitted she had no real control over her Chosen. And Gwena's disposition lately had been as cheerful as this sunny day. Whether it would continue to be so, if Elspeth did something totally against her Companion's advice, was a good question.
Well, there was no point in getting worked up over something that was days, weeks, perhaps months away. But it might be a good idea to drag Gwena off for a long heart-to-heart talk now.
She squeezed Darkwind's hand again, and he smiled at her. 'I'm going to make a round of the Vale to make sure I haven't forgotten anything we might need,' she told him, as an excuse to get Gwena alone for that long talk. 'It won't take more than a candlemark or two. Where shall I meet you?'
'Right here?' he offered. His expression lightened considerably, and his eyes crinkled at the corners as he smiled. 'It's about the least-busy place in the Vale at the moment; I was half afraid to go to our ekele lest I be thrown out by a work crew!'
She laughed, and tossed her hair over her shoulder - now it was long enough to toss, for the first time in years. 'I think they'll be polite enough to wait until we're gone, but you ought to take Vree outside the Vale for a hunt. Maybe you and I have been working our tails off, but I think he's been bored.'
Nearly invisible in the bush, Vree made a chortling sound
