Faryn’s face swam into focus. “Ethan!”
“I’m good,” I managed. “All part of the process.”
“You almost died,” Nydarth said in my mind. “You should not treat this as such a game, sweet man. You’re liable to kill yourself in the process.”
“I’m still breathing,” I pointed out to the dragon spirit. “That’s good enough, right?”
She snorted, but I still picked up on the note of pride in her voice.
I stood and reached for Faryn’s arm to steady myself. The elf winced as my fingers closed over her forearm. I pulled my hand away and saw blood and a deep, shallow cut under her sleeve.
“You said sap had healing properties, right?”
“Ethan, it’s nothing a few herbs can’t heal. Now that you’re awake, I can gather some. I saw a particularly interesting species not far from here.”
I shook my head. “That won’t be necessary.”
I reached into my pool of Vigor and instinctively channeled through the newly forged pathways of sap. I melded the pathways of Smothering Mist and Stinging Palm together, and instead of directing them in an offensive motion, I pulled them back within me. By changing the direction from outward to inward, I figured they might have the opposite effect.
Vigor flowed from me and crystallized into a substance the consistency and color of honey. The sap slid into place over Faryn’s arm and caught the rays of the sun above us. It shimmered for a moment.
The wound on Faryn’s arm closed as the flesh knitted itself back together.
“Sunlight Ichor,” the elf breathed in astonishment. “I’ve only ever heard of this, never seen it.”
“Catches the sun and heals injuries, doesn’t it?”
“Depends on how its implemented. I’ve heard tales of it converting sunlight into Vigor. But, at this level, I find that unlikely. Thank you for your ministrations, Disciple.” Her smile took any sting out of the title.
“So, about those ‘rewards’ you were talking about earlier?”
“We should head back to the guild before more lampreys find us,” Faryn reminded me gently. “Although, behind the safety of some thick walls, I’d be more than happy to educate you in other areas.”
I kissed her as I rose. “I’ll hold you to that.”
We trudged through the shallow waters and thick mud banks of the marshes. Halfway back to the boat, a familiar figure appeared from the the reeds and waved to us.
“Vesma?” I called out. “What are you doing here?”
Her face brightened as she saw me.
“Came to find you,” she said. “Figured you could use a hand.”
She’d spent far more time than me studying the map Xilarion had given us, so it made sense that she would come here to find us. But she would have needed a boat to get here. I scanned the shoreline until I spotted a boat. There was only a single person inside the craft, a water guild member.
“You left Kegohr behind?” I asked.
“He’s fine,” Vesma reassured me. “He said he wanted some space to practice by himself. That, and someone told the initiates at Resplendent Tears that they can talk to us. They’ve been hounding me nonstop for details on how to use their techniques differently. They’re pawing over us like we’re celebrities.”
I laughed, but Vesma didn’t seem amused.
“You might be used to it, Ethan,” she muttered, “but I hate them staring at me all the time.”
“Let me head back to the guild house,” Faryn said. “I need to get cleaned up anyway. I can talk to the guildmaster and ask him to keep his students at a polite distance, if you’d prefer.”
A reluctant smile touched Vesma’s lips. “I’d appreciate that, Master Faryn.”
Faryn nodded. “Ethan, will you return with us?”
My stomach growled audibly in answer, and Faryn laughed.
“Alternatively, you could visit Qihin City.” She pointed to the edge of the marshes. “It’s a small trek from here. Their food is excellent, and you’re sure to blend in better.” Her smile turned coy. “And I hear that their bathhouses are top-notch. Perhaps you should visit them.”
“Watch your step around Horix,” I warned her. “I don’t know what his game is, but I don’t think he’s particularly open to Xilarion’s message.”
“I’ll ease his mind,” Faryn assured me.
Vesma jerked her head toward the path Faryn had described. “I’ll go with you. You look like you’ve just been mud-wrestling a fire salamander.”
“I’ll leave you both to your travels.” Faryn winked at me.
The elf kissed me, said goodbye to Vesma, and set off toward the boat.
Vesma watched her leave and then, gave me a playful shove as I strode to her side. “I thought she’d never leave. So, did you find what you wanted?”
“I sure did. Another element. Sap.”
“Sounds positively. . . underwhelming.”
I shrugged as I followed her along the path. “It could be useful.”
Logs had been laid out in a small boardwalk that provided a relief from the soft mud under my feet. I shook caked mud off my sandals and legs.
“You’ll end up being like Cadrin if you’re not careful.” Vesma laughed. “All worried about how he looks. I’ve heard legends of how long he takes to get himself ‘presentable’ in the morning.”
“Yeah, he seems like that kind of guy.”
The pathway soon took us out of the marshes and toward a city.
Qihin City lay at the low point where the end of the mountain chain ran down into the sea. It was enclosed on two sides by towering rock formations, with waterfalls cascading down across layers of stone, past brightly painted pagodas that perched on the out-thrust crags like flowers blooming from a mountainside. The other two sides faced out toward the sea, past a delta filled with small islands and sailing junks, their flags fluttering in the wind.
The city itself was built in the same style as the mountain-side houses, its architecture dominated by tiered pagodas in brightly painted wood. Between the buildings flowed countless streams and smaller waterfalls, as the land dropped toward the ocean and the mass of water running off the mountains raced to join its salt
