Legacy (Daughter of War #2)

Chapter 17: The Cave of Three Souls

Music is He the Empty from the Ergo Proxy OST, composed by Ike Yoshihiro. Play it!

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Gilbert's face looks blanched under his tan skin; his spine instantly straightens. Meanwhile, I manage to maintain my neutral expression, but I fear that the pounding of my heart will give away the tension building inside me.

Everest, Pietists bless him, is the only one who seems unaffected by Sir Kendrick's words. In fact, he looks more sceptical than anything else. "Sir?" he says cautiously.

"Like I said, there's a witch in the Cave of Three Souls." He marches over to the only fireplace, taking his gloves off and warming his fingers against the dancing embers. It suddenly occurs to me that I don't feel half as cold as I should be. "I sound daft, but that's the case."

"How do you know, sir?" Gilbert finds his voice, although it comes out a few pitches higher than usual.

The Bane's lips thin into a grim smile. "I grew up in a time when magic was still rife," he says. "You all are probably too young to remember anything of it, but I do. I can still recognise the telltale signs of a ward—even if I do not know the exact terms of its magic."

"What do you mean that there's a witch in the Cave of Three Souls, Sir Kendrick?" I finally dare to ask.

"All right, so it mayn't be a witch"—I release a small sigh of relief—"but there is magic at work there. No doubt about it."

"What happened exactly, sir?" Everest still looks cynical, though some of it has melted away into curiosity.

"Where do I start?" Sir Kendrick starts to pace up and down the room, his cloak flapping like a crow's wing. "I went down to the Cave of Three Souls. When I tried to enter it, I was thrown backwards. That was when I saw the glowing barrier."

Perhaps it only allows entrance for certain people. "Have you tried asking Grand Seer Fabienne about this?" I raise my brows. "The Lorelays must have access to the cave somehow. Otherwise they wouldn't be able to pay their annual homage to Pst. Zorah."

"She's nowhere to be found," Sir Kendrick replies. He stops pacing. "Get Sir Isaac. If he wants to be of help, he needs to help us find the Grand Seer."

Just as he finishes his command, the doors creak open. My necromancy flares; Miraterciel sings in protest. A disgruntled head peeks out. "There, there. No need for that," says Sir Isaac. "I promise that I'd help, and here I am."

Sir Kendrick gives the elderly knight a nod of acknowledgement; the rest of us salute. "Excellent. Had a good rest, Sir Isaac?"

"Aye, I did." My former trainer enters the room proper, stretching his spindly arms. Every part of me is screaming at him. The shadows seem to gather around Sir Isaac, poised to strike when I give the order. No. He is my trainer. I grit my teeth and hold the shadows back. "Nearly forgot how tiring travelling can be."

"You just travelled to Hallicus seven months ago, Sir Isaac," Sir Kendrick counters.

"Ah, but that was when I was on holiday. Pietists know that my squires didn't miss me!" Sir Isaac wags an impervious finger in the Bane's face. "This is for an entirely different matter."

On another day, Sir Kendrick might have been inclined to engage in friendly banter with Sir Isaac. But the older knight's light-heartedness does little to ease the levity of the situation. The cloud that had graced Sir Kendrick's brow returns, and his expression visibly hardens. "Aye, this is an entirely different matter." Then turning towards the rest of us, he says, "We'll split up. Falkner, take the southern district. Salin, the west. I'll take the east, while Rutherland and Sir Isaac shall remain in the northern district."