The Mountain Dancer

Chapter 52: Sila & Rekness

Sila and Dreff waited by the secret entrance to the council room. Sila monitored the Dance activities with one of her newly inserted probes. Tapping in undetected was much easier with so much attention and power directed at the room at the top.

“Do you see Northridge?” ask Dreff.

“Right by the boreway.”

“We need to hurry then.”

“Stoneworth and the boy are almost here.”

The shards from the tutor had been a little jumbled, but the gist of it involved a fistfight in the Muster Hall, and the Fists wanted to detain Zak for disciplinary purposes, but Stoneworth had intervened and insisted on taking him to a special detention area herself. An obviously weak story, the guards had followed her most of the way down the boreway, until they were satisfied they were truly well and out of the way.

Now, the damn drunkard was saying she was convinced the guards were still following her, and that Zak was getting restless, suspicious, and angry.

‘Drop the disciplinary charade with him, and tell him Rekness is down here and you suspect he’s going to sabotage Shaynike,’ Sila sent. Did she have to do everything around here?

‘Okay, that worked. He’s hustlin’. Three minutes,’ came the reply a few moments later.

“Get ready,” Sila said to Dreff.

The tall man slunk away, and Sila went back to the council room. She found Rek sitting in a corner of the room, his eyes puffy and his hair askance. The book was still on the table.

“Rekness. He’s here. It’s time you showed me what it means to wrong a Crag.”

The boy wiped at his face and tried to hide it, but gave up quickly. “Who’s here?” he said.

“Zaksar. He has some kind of message concerning the Shaynike girl.”

Rekness was on his feet and streaking towards to door. Sila let him storm past, and scooped up the book. She followed and caught up to him, laying a hand on his shoulder as he exited the cistern.

“Sync with me for this,” she said.

“I can do it on my own.”

“I need to observe your technique. I won’t interfere. Sync.”

He let her in, and she walled herself off from the frenzy inside his mind. They heard voices from the boreway. Rek marched forward.

Zaksar stopped on the bottom step when he saw Rek. Stoneworth was a few steps behind, and stopped as well.

“You,” said Rek, coming to a halt. Sila estimated the distance between them to be five meters.

“What’s this about Shay, dude?” Zak said. He looked over his shoulder, probably hoping for some clarification from the tutor, but she was busy gracelessly climbing down off the side of the boreway.

Rek took a step, “I know about you and her.” He was upcycling.

Zak backed up a stair. “Hey man, she kissed me, okay? Just the once.”

“Don’t lie to me!” Another step. The temperature in the drainworks started to fall and Sila slipped the book into her robe. It was beginning to glow.

“I’m not! Dude, I swear.”

“It’s not fair, it’s not. She was- we were-”

“Look at this. Dude, look at this.” Zak held up his fist. His knuckles were scraped and bleeding. “I broke Flekjoe’s face with this, okay? Ask Stoneworth, ask Shaynike. I did it so you all could have your Dance the way you wanted. I’m on your side man.”