“I understand.” The defender led Blandone’s young wife in the direction of the kitchens. “I will be careful,” he promised before turning away to follow in their wake.
I walked off in the direction of the back exit. I needed time to pray and think all of this over. Something was forming in my mind and I didn’t like what it was promising to be.
LATE THAT NIGHT, LONG after the rest of the compound was asleep, I sent for Renato and Tristan. They appeared at my doorstep, Renato dragging his cloak and Tristan’s silvery hair standing on end. I ushered them in and offered hot Jaloium tea. Once they were sitting and the mugs securely settled on the table, I made my announcement.
“I am going on a Progress.”
“A what?” Renato asked as he hunched over his steaming mug.
“Previous Sept Sons have done it. I and a small select few from my staff are going to travel about the country, overseeing what the trainers are doing and speaking with trainees.”
“Somehow I suspect there is more at stake here than visiting the Trainers,” Tristan commented as he met my gaze. “Why don’t you tell us what exactly is going on.”
“We are preparing for war.” I ran my hands through my hair. “I have been thinking about the events of the past week and the news that we keep getting of unusual increased activity around the known Elitist-sympathizers. In light of what we know of the inner-workings of the settlement on the west coast and their purpose, I believe that a full confrontation between the Elitists and the non-talented is unavoidable. When that time comes, the only thing standing between the non-talented and annihilation will be the talented. With that knowledge, I want to do everything in my power to be ready.”
“Now that they know that Blan was a spy, they will move the time of attack closer.”
“But they don’t know that,” Renato said. “If they had known that, they would have killed Blan.”
“He did disappear from within the settlement, though; so, they would be foolish not to suspect that he was,” Tristan pointed out.
“So, let us assume that they know that Blan was a spy. They know that they have razed his mind, leaving nothing usable to us, which will buy them time.” I swirled the amber liquid in my mug.
“And they are limited by the age of the children,” Renato added.
I nodded slowly. “Yes, the oldest children are now in their fourth year. Even if they show immediate promise and extraordinary concentration skills for little ones so young, it will still take about three years for them to reach a level of usefulness for the purposes of Thrasius Parzifal’s plans. So, if he doesn’t wait for more of the children to reach the age of usefulness, we will have three years. On the long side, I would estimate seven or more years. Regardless of how long we have, I intend to use that time to prepare.”
“Why not take action now?” Tristan asked.
“I want to avoid repeating the massacre of Sept Son Tyronus. If there is anyway that we can peacefully diffuse the situation between now and then, I am praying the Almighty reveals it to me.”
“Fair enough.” Tristan drained his mug.
“I will begin the preparations tomorrow,” Renato offered.
“And I will begin researching how we might defend ourselves against the unethical tactics of the Elitists.” I met their gazes across the table. “Remember not to tell anyone the true reason for this. Secrecy is our only defense right now.”
Both men nodded and rose. After quick farewells, they left for their beds and I returned to my prayers. Without the Almighty’s guidance, all of this would be in vain.
Chapter XVI
Zezilia
“What are you going to make with your berries?” Candra asked from the shaded depths of the brandleberry patch. I didn’t look up from my task.
“Eloine promised to teach me how to make jam.” With my training finally complete, I had been focusing on more domestic persuits as I awaited my final testing.
“Eloine? Have you tasted her jam?”
“Candra, you promised,” I exclaimed, straightening to frown at her over the sea of dark leaves and speckles of maroon red berries among the waves. Candra had made a pact with Selwyn that she would refrain from speaking negatively about things for a week. Almost everyone was wagering that she wouldn’t even make it a day, much less the three that passed before this comment.
“Sorry,” she called before disappearing beneath a swell of branches. “Though technically I wasn’t criticizing, I was simply speaking the truth?”
“Somehow that didn’t sound like truth spoken in love.”
My companion grunted in response and then occupied herself in catching up with my yield. Deciding to give her a chance to close the gap between my four pail loads and her one and a half, I paused and soaked in the flickers of morning summer sun that reached us so deep within the shadows.
This particular brandleberry patch bordered a broad meadow near the front edge of the Silas property. Only a few feet away, the shadows transitioned abruptly into glaring sunlight. The field, crowded with grasses and weeds, waved in the slight breeze that came from the north and wound its way to the sea. The branches of the oak and maples above us bobbed in the wind causing the flecks of sunlight to dance madly over the secret depths of the bushes.
I spread out my senses, watching the movement with the extra assistance of my energy. In the year and a half since Selwyn began working with me, I had learned to stretch my senses beyond the bounds of the farm. True, I couldn’t sense things as well as when I concentrated on a smaller area, but it was enough to detect where each living animal, bird, insect, and human was and which direction they were moving.
Selwyn encouraged me to keep stretching. As he was constantly pointing out, my capabilities
