Serena's POV:
I stood with Darien and a small crowd of observers some distance from the rubble where the old waygate once stood. Many had still not grown accustomed to seeing the sviper over the last three days and gave him his space. Since he was standing beside Darien, that space also included us.
We were all watching a couple of Dranek who were inspecting the pile of rubble. The one with the fancy armbands was the gatemaster I had seen once before. He had been the one who connected the two waygates for us.
The gatemaster knelt among the rubble as it started to faintly glow. He didn't use his voice to control his magic; much like Darien's Reading ability, his magic was simply controlled by his concentration. The rocks started shifting as they began to roll to two main points, before rolling over one another to climb up. The rocks defied gravity as they rolled over other rocks to slowly form the arch.
It wasn't a fast process though, and the gatemaster was there for at least fifteen minutes before a bright flash marked the moment he finished. He stood up and walked towards us while the new Dranek ambassador walked beside him. They came to a stop in front of their audience, which was comprised of the Councillors, Darien, myself, Alex, Fiona, Lucas, Schlach, and Saphira. More Tarulk were much further back as they minded the carts and creatures that had pulled them.
The new ambassador for the Dranek bowed slightly, "The gate is up and operational. The old codes no longer work, so the gatemaster has created a new code. May we show you the new codes and give you a quick tour of our home world, Drashna?"
It was a generous offer on their side, but also required trust from the Tarulk that this was not a trap. To their credit, the two original Councillors didn't hesitate, "Thank you for your very generous offer. We appreciate it and we will accept your offer."
Our entire group walked back with the Dranek to the gate. I watched as the gatemaster showed the Tarulk the new codes for the gate as Alex wrote them down. I hadn't realized that the numerous engravings on the lower section of the arch were actually like a combination code.
Once that was done, the gatemaster started to press different symbols that were the code for Drashna. It was an odd process, full of pauses while seconds were counted, before more engravings were touched. It probably took a full fifteen minutes from the start until the gate opened with the low swooshing sound. By letting the Tarulk see the Dranek gate codes, it was a measure of trust on the Dranek's own side.
The gatemaster and his companions went through before the rest of us followed them. Schlach waited with us and we passed through last. Those who had never been here were thoroughly distracted by the towering trees. Schlach took a deep breath of the humid air as his red eyes scanned the greenery.
Saphira was standing beside me and I whispered, "What are they likely going to show them?"
Saphira responded just as quietly, "Things that may interest Council members. The elders are waiting and will likely show them the town before taking them for a quick tour of our own administrative building."
I had seen all of those places before, and I wanted to see if my song may find an answer for the forests of this world. We had never found the cause and it was worth another try. "What are the odds of us sneaking off to the forest?"
Saphira knew exactly what I was referring to, "You aren't part of the Council, so we can separate from the group without any issues."
Schlach was listening to us, "As much as I would rather have a tour of the forest, my position on the Council dictates my choices. Perhaps another day."
Saphira nodded respectfully, "I am certain we can arrange that."
He nodded before walking over to the other Council members. Saphira glanced around before heading in another direction, Darien and I followed her. Once more, my usual five Dranek guards tagged along before disappearing into the trees around us.
I glanced back, but it didn't look like any of the Tarulk noticed that we were sneaking off. We headed down one of the trails. Saphira asked, "How far do you wish to go?"
I shrugged, "Far enough that those we left behind won't have a chance of hearing me sing. It doesn't have to be far. It probably won't work any better than it has the last dozen times I tried, but I still want to try."
Saphira nodded kindly, she knew it frustrated me that I couldn't locate the source of the problem. Although if the svipers were correct, I would have quite a few centuries to work on it... My mind simply couldn't wrap itself around that concept and focused on the forest instead.
The birdsong was relaxing, and we occasionally passed a patch of fragrant flowers as I walked hand in hand with Darien. Saphira stopped in a small clearing, "Will this work?"
I knew this area since we had stopped here before. The next small clearing was another twenty minutes away. "Sure."
I leaned against Darien's side as I closed my eyes and started to hum. The hum quickly modulated into a soft song, although I kept careful control of it. I sensed several small corrections nearby, but they were quite minor and localized. I sought out the cause of the rot that had plagued the trees so.
The rot hadn't started yet, although I knew that the cause was still there, but I couldn't identify it or determine how to stop it. I had a nagging feeling that I should know though, as if the answer was just on the edge of my mind. Like hearing distant music and knowing that you should know the words to the song.
It was frustrating, but no matter how hard I tried, or how I altered my song's pitch, rhythm, or melody, I couldn't seem to locate the answer or permanently correct it. In short, it reminded me a lot of when I had tried to take my personal defense classes. I could learn the moves, but was unable to use them against someone. I could tell that there was a problem still present, but was unable to identify it or do anything about it.
I gave up before I tired myself too much. I leaned my head against Darien's shoulder with a sigh, "Still nothing. I know the cause is still present, but I can't seem to remove it or even discover what it is."
Darien squeezed his arms lightly around my shoulders as he kissed my forehead, "Perhaps we will discover it one day. The forest will stand for a long time yet."
His words were the truth, and I acknowledged that. Perhaps the Dranek would find another singer and he or she would be able to fix what I could not. I had only recently started to really use my singing ability, after all.
"You're right. I will just have to keep trying, although at this rate, the Dranek had better not stop searching for other singers."
Saphira commented, "We will always search for singers, although the damage in the forest has been reversed, so it will be centuries before it declines so much again."
That was a bit of a relief. It wasn't as if I was on a tight time crunch. I would just have to keep working at it.
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