Voice of the Gods

It was so easy.

Auraya paced the void. For the last hour she had walked in circles, slowly making her way around the edge of the magic-deficient boundary. Though her mind shield had become a constant habit she rarely thought about any more, she did not want to leave the void until Jade confirmed it was safe for her to do so.

So easy. I can’t believe it was that easy. And it hardly takes any magic at all.

After Jade had left for the morning, Auraya had done what the older woman had suggested: she had spent some time thinking about magical healing and how it might be applied to herself. Curiosity had led her to focus on her body, then cautiously experiment. Within moments the logic of what Jade had told her came to her.

A different reasoning had led her to take the next step and apply the knowledge. If she was damned in the eyes of the gods for just knowing how to become immortal, then she may as well become immortal.

It had been unexpectedly easy.

The realization that the same Gift could be used to heal herself from almost any injury had helped her make that decision. That Gift had enabled Mirar to survive being crushed under a building. If she was going to resist Huan, Chaia willing, she might need to do something similar.

The thought of ending up like Mirar, a hunted enemy of the gods, dismayed her, but she clung to the hope that she would remain Chaia’s follower.

He will forgive me when he learns that Huan allowed me to learn to heal magically in order to persuade the others to let her kill me.

“Getting some exercise, are we?”

Auraya turned to see Jade striding into the cave carrying two buckets. She shrugged, then followed Jade to the beds, curious to see what the woman had found this time. Jade set the buckets down beside the cooking stone.

“You’ll be happy to know you can leave the void now,” she said. “I haven’t sensed your emotions or been able to skim your thoughts in days.”

“I guessed it would be soon,” Auraya said. Both the buckets were full of clear water, but one had strange creatures swimming within it. “What are they?”

“Shrimmi. They’re hard to catch, but delicious. I thought we’d have a nice farewell dinner before I left.”

“When are you leaving?”

“Tomorrow.”

Auraya moved to her bed and sat down. She itched to tell Jade she had achieved immortality. There wasn’t anyone else except Mirar who might congratulate her rather than be horrified. And Jade had wanted her to discover it.

Yet that was what made Auraya hesitate. What if Jade had a secret, malicious reason to lure Auraya into learning the Gift?

I don’t know how much I can trust this woman. She says she has been helping me at Mirar’s request, but there could be another reason I can’t see.

It wasn’t difficult to see that by helping one of the gods’ followers learn Gifts they disapproved of, Jade was striking a small blow against them. But if causing strife between the gods and a follower was Jade’s intention, she had added little to a conflict that had already existed. Still, if that was Jade’s purpose, it would be better to know it than suspect it.

And Auraya couldn’t see any other way that immortality could be used against her. If there was, it would be better to know about it sooner rather than later.

“I had that long think you suggested I have,” Auraya told the woman.

Jade looked up, her eyebrows raised. “You did? What did you discover?”

“You were right. It was easy.”

“Easy, eh?” Jade shook her head. “One attempt. I’ve never known of anyone who learned so fast.” Her eyes narrowed. “Are you sure?”

Auraya smiled, amused by the other woman’s suspicion. “Quite sure. But then, I already knew how to heal.”

Jade nodded and looked away. Picking up the bucket, she poured clear water into the hollow of the cooking stone.

“Are there other ways this Gift can be used?” Auraya asked.

The woman looked at her sharply. “Like what?”

“It occurred to me that it could be used to change a person’s appearance.”

Jade regarded Auraya thoughtfully. “Do you want to change your appearance?”

“Me?” Auraya chuckled. “One thing I learned from being able to read minds is that people are never satisfied with how they look. I’d like to fix a few things. I even considered trying it, but I didn’t have a mirror and I thought I should ask you in case I did something permanent.”

“That’s wise.”

“Then I thought, would I feel different if I changed how I looked?” Auraya continued. “If I felt different, would that mean I was a different person? And once I’d started, would it be tempting to keep changing things? Could I even turn myself into a Siyee?” She shook her head. “More possibilities kept occurring to me then. Could a person change their physical age or their gender? Could they make themself smarter? So is it possible to make such changes?”

Jade smiled. “You can change your appearance, but the rest... I don’t know. You are wise to hesitate. Appearance does affect a person’s identity, and Mirar is a good example of what can happen if you meddle with your own identity.”

Auraya nodded. “Can I teach you something in return for what you’ve taught me?”

The woman looked amused. “I ask only that you do not betray us to the gods.”

“That is reasonable. By ‘us’ you mean yourself and Mirar?”

Jade hesitated. “Yes.”

“So you wouldn’t be interested in learning how to fly?”

The woman regarded Auraya with an unreadable expression. “You would teach me that?”

“Yes. I’m curious to know if anyone else can do it.”

Jade looked down at the shrimmi, then back at Auraya.

“I suppose I could stay one more day.”

Dardel opened her eyes and experienced a moment of disorientation. The furniture in her room had been arranged differently. Things were missing. Then she saw the man sitting on the chair by the window and she smiled as she remembered she was in Dreamweaver Wilar’s room.

Wilar was watching her. He still had that haunted look about his eyes, but as he noticed she was awake his mouth twitched into a crooked smile.

“Tintel was looking for you before,” he told her.

She looked toward the window. From the angle of the sunlight, she guessed it was late morning. She stretched, enjoying the feeling of cloth against her bare skin. “I was wondering if I was going to get any sleep at all last night.”

“You didn’t seem to mind.”

“Not at all.” She sat up, drawing the bedding up around herself, and looked for her clothes. They were on the floor next to the bed. “In fact,” she found herself saying, “I’ve never encountered a man with such stamina. And I’m surprised at my own. I ought to feel worn out, literally, but I don’t.” She picked up her clothes, then paused and looked up at him. “Was this a once-only thing?”

His mouth twitched with amusement. “It is temporary, but how temporary depends on how long I stay here, and if we grow bored with each other.”

She chuckled. “I don’t think I’ll tire of you. In fact, I think I’ll be fussy who I bed from now on. You’ve given me higher expectations.” She shot him a mock glare. “You’ve probably ruined me for any other man.”

All amusement fled from his face and he actually winced. She immediately regretted her words. There was no doubt a reason for that haunted look, and she had obviously reminded him of it. A past lover, perhaps? It would