Soulbonder

Chapter 3 - The Golden Rose

Alashar broke the silence between them. "You're sure there was nothing happening today?"

"I never said that. You were the one who said it'd be okay."

"And it will be. Relax. It probably has nothing to do with us. But we should get back j-"

"Just to be safe."

"Exactly. Get back now and they'll never know the difference."

They gathered up the stray arrows and deposited them with the bow back into the bonewood hollow. Then they raced through the forest, vaulting over treacherous undergrowth on their way back to town.

When they emerged onto the foothills, Shale's attention drew north, where through the belltower arch, the copper bell swung back and forth. A crowd were gathered at the foot of the monastery steps. There were hundreds of them. Everyone in town must've been concentrated into that throng. Their collective attention was locked on the closed ornate doors of the monastery vestibule.

Alashar gasped.

Shale spun around to the south to face the direction he was looking, then she saw it too.

Beyond the inns and taverns, floating in the harbour, was the biggest ship she'd ever seen. It cast a shadow over the entire southern quarter of town. It had to be ten times bigger than any other present vessel and three times bigger than those large trading cogs that brought spices from Zintarro once a year.

The wood gleamed with fresh white paint and a drawn sail ruffled gently in the breeze. Emblazoned upon the hull of the mammoth structure was a sigil that plunged her heart into melting frost. It was a golden rose, framed upon a black shield.

"The Kersaja," Alashar whispered.

"Eleven, what's going on?"

"I have no idea but-"

"We need to get back."

"Come on then. Stay close together."

They raced through the town centre, where the crowd was so dense that they had to shove and squirm to make any progress. This brought on several glares and chastisements from the townsfolk, but they ignored these and rounded into the alleyway to the side of the monastery.

Once they found the right spot, Alashar knelt and pushed the loose slab. He was so panicked that he managed to find extra strength enough to free it without Shale's assistance. He wriggled through the open square and she followed. The cramped storage room wreaked of rotten paper, tallow fat, and damp wood, which was even more evident after the sweet smells of the forest.

They replaced the slab and crawled to the door, nearly knocking over rows of books and candelabra in the process. Once they passed through the door, they clattered down the corridor as fast as their legs would allow. The walls were trembling from the tolling of the bell. Beneath it, they could hear a gaggle of voices, emanating from the prayer room.

They never got the chance to discuss their next move. Their decision was made for them by the figure emerging from the room to cut them off.

SanMother Zeera's face was the shade of beetroot, contrasting comically against the gentle colours of her sky blue robe. Shale would've found it amusing were she not so deathly afraid. "Where in the name of Tarshara were the two of you?"

Shale and Alashar exchanged a glance, likely sharing the same thought. Why, for the love of the Eleven, hadn't they taken a minute to invent an excuse?

Alashar quickly began constructing a convoluted alibi, on how they'd been in the study, but had to visit the library to source the correct text, and when they'd failed to locate it among the stacks, they had to check the storage room. It was a rather impressive lie, for it being entirely improvised. Although it still didn't explain why they'd failed to respond to the bell, it did cover why they were untraceable to a specific room and why they'd come from this side of the corridor.