Children of the Citadel

chapter 10

Soren, Isador and I's breath hitched in unison.

It couldn't be true. At Runhura's words, I was forced to ignore the insinuation that Incantare themselves were suspected of infiltrating the Citadel. There's one here? How?

There was rapid movement beside me. Still afraid to make any sound, I looked only from the corner of my eye. Soren had reached behind me and grabbed onto Isador's upper arm. My body was pushed to the wall as Soren pulled Isador towards him, in the direction we had come from. Isador did not resist, but rather moved on his own with no hesitation, squeezing between myself and the opposite wall until he was between Soren and I.

The two exchanged glances, Isador's one of questioning and Soren's resolute.

As odd as their nonverbal communication was, it was a mistake to turn my eyes and ears away from the conversation happening below for one second longer.

Soren was gesturing with a hand for Isador to go back the way we came when I returned my attention to the scene on the other side of the wall.

"-is impossible," Runhura finished a sentence, "we will continue to update you as we see fit. I'm sure that our Messiah will do the same."

My father's arms were crossed. He said nothing.

Odessa clicked her tongue at Runhura before turning to my father. "Evander, do not worry yourself," she cooed, "enjoy the wedding, see the Ascension through, and return home to your children."

Junia and Callum. They would not be in attendance today, it seemed.

Father exhaled heavily through his nose. "I will remain in contact," he stood from his chair.

He offered a shallow bow to the King, "If you'll excuse me, I must retire and prepare for the ceremonies."

The four exchanged polite nods and my dad turned to leave the room. I heard the creak of the ladder and allowed it to draw my attention while the conversation below paused. Isador disappeared down the ladder at the end of the thin, inter-wall corridor while Soren watched on, ensuring his arrival at the bottom.

I gave him a quizzical look when we met eyes. Soren didn't speak, but approached the crack in the wall that I was still knelt beside. He silently lowered himself to join me, and I shuffled on my knees a bit to allow him more space. An abundance of caution prevented me from asking him why he had ushered Isador away.

I turned my head again and peered through the crack in the wall; at the same time, I heard the door shut.

To my dismay, and likely Soren's as well, no one remained in the room. It was empty. My father's exit must have concluded their meeting.

I sighed deeply, the first sound I had allowed myself to make since my arrival in the crawlspace. "Damn it," Soren mumbled.

I turned to him. "Where's Isador?" I kept my voice at a whisper, just in case.

He only gestured with his head for me to follow him, toward the way out. I huffed quietly, but went along. In his dark clothes, Soren nearly blended into the shadows of the crawlspace. This time, he used the ladder first, and turned his back as I descended slowly, wary of my long skirt swirling around each step.

There was no light at the end of the tunnel when I looked upon reaching the ground floor - Isador must have shut that door behind him. It did not open as we approached it.

"I don't want him hearing everything," Soren said quietly as we shuffled along between the walls.

He didn't explain any more than that, but Isador was a decade younger than Soren. It stood to reason that Soren would want to protect him from more... sensitive topics. Terrifying topics. How could they possibly have an Incantare here? What room could they possibly have that could hold one? From what little descriptive information I had found regarding Incantare in past years, they were extraordinarily powerful, well-versed in ancient, unnatural magic, the ancestor of the diluted party tricks that some humans were still capable of. They would certainly be impossible to contain - likely to escape, even. If Soren had come to that same conclusion, it was no wonder he didn't want Isador being aware of it.