7/24/3028
Two soldiers still stood sentry outside my door the next morning.
"Sye-Liene Anmyn, good morning. Is there anything we can do for you?" The taller soldier asked.
"Can you get Keiran Anmus for me?" I asked.
"Certainly, Anmyn."
While I waited, I flipped through Faces of Eloria again. Just as Elossai told me and Martin, the only distinguishing physical feature of Syes was their eyes, but not all Syes had the same radiant sapphire color. Some had brown eyes with a light sapphire rim that only become a more striking blue when they used their powers.
Syes also had the power of projecting their emotions through touch, and this inherent power can be strengthened through training. As I read about their powers, the thought came to me that Stanjah had shared an emotion with me before. In Possen Fort when Elossai and I were in Martin's room without permission, Stanjah grabbed my arm and I felt something. The room dimmed, and I was struck by a deep sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. I knew now that she had projected her fear and apprehension, such that I truly grasped the gravity of the situation.
Curious to know more about Syelos, I pulled out my tablet from the drawer and turned on the device.
"Information about Syelos. Activate interactive hologram," I said.
"Affirmed." The tablet flashed a bright blue then a holographic projection of a map of Syelos appeared in front of me.
To the south was the mainland, and to the north were several smaller islands in a cluster. I zoomed into the south and selected Analos, the capital. The visual of a white stone building overlooking a busy fountain square appeared. The building was upheld by large columns and had several steeples.
In the square were people in bright, solid colored clothing and the women's dresses and trousers were fashioned with geometric cut-outs at the sleeves or back. Among the Syes were a couple Elos with their forehead gemstones in full display.
The tablet narrated: "Analos: the capital city of Syelos has a population of seven million, and eleven and a half million in the metropolitan area. Syelos's education system is widely-acclaimed in Eloria, producing highly-skilled scientists as well as corin manipulators."
"More information about corin manipulation," I said.
The tablet flashed blue and chimed two descending musical tones. "Syelos has the earliest exposure to corin manipulation in Eloria. Children in year five begin to learn theory and relaxation techniques. In the following three years, students are limited to meditation. Further education in corin manipulation is selected through examination with corin general studies taken in years nine and ten and specializing studies in the years eleven and twelve."
The more I read, the more interested I grew. The study of corin manipulation had many divisions that students specialized in and took years to perfect.
The divisions were Military and Operations and they branched out to smaller subdivisions. For example, the M-EW, Military—Enhanced Weaponry subdivision, specialized in the study of using corin enhanced weaponry, while the M-ES, Military—Enhanced Summoning subdivision, focused on the study of summoning corin energies.
Then, there was the Operations division which was subdivided into O-EM, Enhanced Machinery, and O-ETR, Enhanced Technologies Research.
I'd only begun to scratch the surface of the fundamentals of corin manipulation when I heard a knock at my door.
"Good morning, Liene," Keiran said as he entered. He was smiling from ear to ear. "I apologize for the wait. I was in the middle of an important discussion with my father."
I glanced at the clock—almost an hour had passed. I turned off my tablet. "It's okay. Come in and close the door behind you."
"I'm surprised to hear you were looking for me so early. I assume you have had sufficient rest?" he asked after closing the door gently behind him.
"Yeah, I'm good."
"See, Liene, you had nothing to worry about."
"Right..." I answered carefully. Did he mean that I had nothing to worry about because it had already been staged, or did he not know about the staging? He spoke in a genuine manner and I couldn't sense any falsehood.
"Liene?" He looked confused.
I thought for a moment, then decided I would try to find out how much he knew. "Can you be honest with me?"
"With you, I am always."
"Is there something I should know?" I questioned.
His eyebrows furrowed, and he placed a thumb on his chin, trying to figure out what I was implying. "Do you mean to say there is something that I should tell you? That I am keeping from you?"
"Yes," I said, nodding. "It's about something that you may know, but I don't. Something that you should tell me."
Keiran sat on the hovering bench at the foot of the bed, then gestured for me to sit beside him. I did without question. He silently studied my face and I studied his. All I could sense was his joy and contentment. His smile had grown into a full grin and it was so infectious that I started smiling, too.
"Liene," Keiran said. "You want me to say something that I know, but you don't know, but I should be telling you?"
I was the one that felt confused now. "I don't think we're talking about the same thing."
"What?" He blinked. It was clear that Keiran didn't know about the corin pond scheme.
"Keiran I need to know that I can trust you not to tell Stanjah this."
His eyes widened. "Not tell Stanjah what?" I waited for his answer. "You have my word."
"Okay." I exhaled deeply. "The confirmation results were staged. Elossai told me about it when we were in the dome. The pond water would turn green regardless of the true result." Keiran sat quietly, listening to every word. "The water in Elossai's hand, which flowed into mine, was the true indicator."
"What color had it turned?" Keiran was expressionless now.
"Black," I whispered.
"I don't believe you would make a joke of this, but I have to ask if you are sure," he asked. I couldn't speak, I simply nodded. Keiran pulled away and stood up, beginning to pace around the room.
It was a while before I felt confident enough to speak again. "I'm sorry."
He stopped pacing but didn't face me. "It's not your fault."
"If it's any consolation, Elossai is proof that Sye-Liene is still alive," I said, trying my best to look on the bright side. Keiran nodded with his back still to me. I felt horrible for being the bearer of terrible news.
"I had thought..." He ran his hands through his hair as he tried to make sense of what I had just told him. He turned to face me. "I thought you wanted me to openly express my feelings for you."
The pang in my chest rose to my throat and I had to swallow hard to force down the emotion. "It doesn't matter now. I'm just Ellis Ann Moore—or whoever."
"It does matter. My feelings for the past couple weeks were real. Weren't they for you?"
He sat back down beside me. I could feel that he was looking at me, but I couldn't bring myself to meet my eyes against his. "I made a promise to you, Ellis, and it doesn't matter who you are. I will help you find your identity, and help Martin get his sister back."
***
When I was finally allowed to visit Martin, it was nearly ten at night. I asked Martin to find Elossai and bring her to my room. Elossai explained to Martin how Stanjah had staged the whole confirmation so that the result would be to Ankinia's favor.
"How could she do that?" Martin asked, incredulously.
"The Ankins need the Crystals, and I suppose Dunek Anmus thought that we must attain them through all means necessary. Even if it means employing deceptive tactics to achieve it," Elossai explained.
"Man, I actually believed you were Sye-Liene after the confirmation. I'm sorry, Ell."
"It's alright." I shrugged, pretending like it didn't bother me. "I've got more news to share though. Martin, you know how I used to have those hallucinations back in Hemley?"
"Yeah."
"Well, they're back. I keep seeing Sye-Liene as my reflection—except she isn't really a reflection because she talks to me and doesn't reflect what I do," I said.
Martin studied me with narrowed eyes as he scratched his head. It looked like he was trying to decide if I was being serious or I'd gone mad.
"I know it sounds absurd," I said, "but you never thought I was crazy before. Please don't start now."
"Don't get bent out of shape, I'm just trying to make sense of it." He held a hand out to me and gestured in a slow up and down motion. "Why do you see her as your reflection when the confirmation proved that you're not Sye-Liene?"
"I think she wants to help me. She taught me how to use the uni-elk cloak."
"She did what?" Elossai gasped.
"I sort of used it," I said with a whisper—as if that would make the statement carry less weight.
"And what happened?" asked Martin.
"It took me to this cliff where I met Rahaiwen the first, one of the Ras."
"You met who?" Martin straightened his back. Elossai had a hand on her forehead as she shook her head. "Does the Ra have Katie?"
"She said Katie was fine—"
"And you believed her?" Martin cut me off. "Her sister tried to kill you."
"Yes, but she explained that Radevin was defective. She wasn't supposed to kill me. Martin, she said that she was present when I... when Sye-Liene went into the Ora," I said. Elossai and Martin stared at me with disbelief. "I'm not defending her," I muttered, trying my best to justify myself.
Martin made an exasperated growl. "It sure sounds like it, Ell."
"Look, Rahaiwen wants to make a deal with us for Katie. How do we know if Dunek Anmus is really going to help us get her back? He was going to mislead me into believing that I was Sye-Liene; he even deceived his own son," I said.
Martin gave me a sidelong glance before running his hands through his hair. He was thinking it over. That meant he wasn't completely closed off to what I was proposing.
"Keiran Anmus did not know?" Elossai asked. I nodded. "How did he react?"
I found my gaze drift to the portrait of Sye-Liene on the wall. "Let's just say that he wasn't thrilled. I assume that he would want to look for Sye-Liene in the future."
"Are you certain that he did not know?" Elossai asked.
"I'm positive."
"Well, if Dunek Anmus didn't tell his own son, I don't think we can trust the Ankins to help us find Katie." Martin concluded with a definitive nod. He glanced at Elossai, waiting for reassurance that she was on our side.
"I will not tell anyone about this, Martin. Was I not the one who told Ellis Ann the truth to start?" Elossai made a valid point.
"Plus, she saved your life, Martin," I added. "I think we can trust her."
"Yeah, you're right. Sorry, I just had to be sure." Martin said.
Elossai bowed her head. "I understand. What are Rahaiwen's stipulations?"
"A trade. Me for Katie," I said.
"I must object."
"It's the only way. We have to accept." I tried to dial back the desperation in my voice. "We can go there with a plan."
"They're only willing to trade because they think you're Sye-Liene. What happens when they realize that you're not?" Martin asked.
"That's why we'll have a plan. I know it seems far-fetched, but what if Rahaiwen is trying to help?"
Elossai was shaking her head, not in anger but pleadingly. "Forgive me, Ellis Ann, but I find it incredibly difficult to believe that. She is loyal to Hidelvus. Like myself, she is forever bound to her master and her master only. She will do whatever he tells her to."
"I don't know, man." Martin rubbed the back of his neck and shook the stray hairs that fell over his eyes. "All I know is that Katie's been with these Ras for three weeks, and it looks to me like very little has been done to find her. She needs to be rescued."
Elossai exhaled deeply, deep in thought. She could see that on one hand she couldn't trust the Ras, and on the other, Katie has been missing for far too long.
I needed to reassure her. "Elossai, I won't agree to anything unless I see Katie first," I said.
"Is there any way that I could go with Ell to meet Rahaiwen?" Martin asked.
"You can go if you are inside the uni-elk with her," said Elossai.
Martin clapped his hands together. "So, when can we go?"
I flipped open my locket. "Right now."