The Shadow Of What Was Lost

Chapter 12

Asha jerked at the door handle once again, despite knowing it was locked.

She frowned around at the black stone walls of her cell, trying in vain to deduce what was going on. She’d been still reeling from the shock of Jin’s murder when she’d fallen asleep - or passed out, as the case may have been - but that had been on a couch in Shana’s house, surrounded by concerned Shadows and with no indication that she was in any trouble. Shana herself had already verified the presence of the Watcher; after that, everyone had seemed to accept that she wasn’t responsible for what had happened. If anything, they had been more worried about her well-being than anything else.

Something had changed in the meantime, though, because when she’d woken she had found herself here. Alone. The solid door locked, with no-one apparently in earshot to hear her shouting.

Frustrated, she bashed on the door with the palm of her hand, the sound echoing in the passageway beyond.

"Hello? Is there anyone there?" she called.

As before, there was no response, no indication that there was anyone nearby to hear her. She returned to her bed with a sigh. The room contained only the bed, a couple of chairs, and a table - nothing she could use to get free. There seemed little else to do but wait.

She tried to distract herself while she lay there. Despite everything that had happened, she’d been impressed with the Sanctuary; the people living down here seemed like good, honest folk, and the efforts of the Shadraehin in creating the underground community were something she admired.

And yet, as hard as she tried to focus on something positive, she kept drifting back to the moment the Watcher had appeared. Wondering how he’d known her name, puzzling over what he’d said to her. And then each time, reliving Jin staring at her in terror as his life seeped away between his fingers.

Maybe an hour had passed when there were echoing footsteps in the hallway outside, and a key rattled in the lock.

Asha leapt to her feet as the door opened to admit a wiry-looking Shadow, a man with a thin face and a scruffy-looking beard. She stared at him in surprise. The oldest Shadows she’d ever seen were in their early thirties - those who had been amongst the first to fail their Trials after the war. The Treaty had a clause that amnestied any Gifted who had taken the tests prior to that… and yet the Shadow who stood opposite her was at least forty.

The man smiled slightly when he saw her expression. "Older than you expected?"

Asha flushed, caught off-guard, and the man waved away her embarrassment apologetically. "It’s okay. Everybody has that reaction the first time. Please, sit," he added, gesturing to one of the chairs. "We have much to discuss."

Asha remained standing. "Who are you?" She crossed her arms. "Why am I a prisoner here?"

The man raised an eyebrow, looking more amused than annoyed. "My name is Scyner, but everyone here calls me the Shadraehin. I suppose you could say I’m in charge of the Sanctuary. I’m the one whose responsibility it is to keep the people here safe." He paused, leaning forward, and suddenly his eyes were hard. "And when someone comes into the Sanctuary and lies about their name, it raises questions about their trustworthiness. Ashalia."

Asha stared at the cool certainty in his eyes for a moment, then slowly moved across to the chair and sat.

"Good. I’m glad we’re not wasting time with denials," said Scyner, his cheerful demeanour returning in an instant.

"How did you find out who I am?" she asked.

The Shadraehin scratched at his beard. "We thought you may have been a spy for Administration, at first," he admitted. "They’ve tried that before - offering Gifted who are about to become Shadows an opportunity, a better life. But Administration had no record of any Lissa from Nalean at all, which didn’t make sense. Why bother to change your name? Why lie about where you’re from?"

He reached into his pocket. "And then we put the pieces together. The timing. And we went through Administration’s records of the students from Caladel, and found the image of a young Gifted girl. Ashalia Chaedris." He produced a piece of paper and unfolded it, holding it up for her to see. The sketch was a couple of years old now, the last time one of Administration’s artists had come to Caladel, but it was still a good likeness.

Asha gave a brief nod as she took in the image, for a moment feeling a stab of pain as she thought of the school, remembered when she’d sat for that picture. She switched her gaze back to the Shadraehin.

"I was the only survivor," she said quietly, seeing no advantage to concealing the truth. "I don’t know anything about what happened, but the Council thought I might be important somehow. They hid me in the Tol and asked me to lie about my name, to make sure Administration couldn’t find me." She looked Scyner in the eye. "I didn’t mean you or your people any harm."

"And yet one of my good friends is dead." Emotion flashed across the Shadraehin’s face, gone in an instant. He took a deep breath. "We will get to your situation shortly. First, though, I would very much like to hear what happened with Aelrith."

"That was the man who….?" Asha trailed off.

"Yes," said the Shadraehin. "Though whatever else he may be, he’s not a man."

Asha shivered a little but nodded, unsurprised by the comment. She related what had happened, stopping a couple of times as the emotion of the memory got the better of her. Once she had finished the Shadraehin watched her for a few moments, considering.

"I believe you," he said eventually.

Asha inclined her head, relieved; the last thing she needed was someone challenging her version of events. "Did you catch Aelrith?"

"No. We didn’t even see him leave," admitted Scyner. "If it hadn’t been for Shana’s word, I’m not sure we would have believed he was even in her house."

Asha paled. "Then he’s gone? He’s free?"

The Shadraehin nodded. "He uses the catacombs to come and go - they run for miles, have exits everywhere from in the city to out past the mountains. But we don’t know our way around most of them, even if we wanted to go hunting someone as dangerous as Aelrith. We’ve sent people too deep in there before, and they haven’t come back." His tone softened as he saw her expression. "I wouldn’t worry. From what you said, I don’t think he’s a threat to you. If anything, it sounds like we may never see him again."

Asha acknowledged the statement with a nod, though it didn’t stop her stomach from churning as she thought of the black-hooded figure still out there.

"What do you think it all meant - what he said to me?"

Scyner shrugged. "It makes as little sense to me as it does to you, Ashalia," he admitted. "In all honesty, I’m not sure it meant anything. Whatever Aelrith may be, I don’t think he’s entirely sane." He grimaced. "In fact, after what he did to Jin, I’m quite certain of it."

Asha shuddered at the memory. "What do you think Aelrith is?"

The Shadraehin sighed. "I don’t know for sure. There were rumours after the war ended that Tol Athian had been experimenting on some of their people, trying to create soldiers that were immune to Traps and Shackles… if I had to guess, I’d say maybe he’s one of them. Whether the Council know he’s still down here, though, I have no idea."

He rubbed at his chin, gaze growing distant. "When I first discovered this place and realised it could serve as a haven for Shadows, Aelrith was already here, staring into that light. Aside from today, it’s the only time I know of that he’s stopped to speak to someone. He and I came to an agreement - we wouldn’t go near him, and he wouldn’t go near us. Today is the first time either of us have broken that accord."

There was silence for a few seconds; finally Asha straightened, taking a deep breath. "So what are you going to do with me now?" she asked, dreading the answer.

Scyner raised an eyebrow. "Do with you? You’re free to return to the Tol, Ashalia. Or free to stay if you wish," he said, looking mildly surprised. "You were locked up because I thought you might be a spy. Now I know you’re not." He hesitated. "However, before you make any decisions, I do have a proposition for you which you may find interesting."

Asha exhaled, tense muscles loosening a little. "Which is?"

"I have… something of an interest in finding out exactly what happened to your school and the others that were attacked," said the Shadraehin. "I suspect you do too. If you’re willing, I think I know how we might work together to find some answers."

Asha stared at Scyner for a moment, barely daring to believe her ears. "How?" she asked eagerly. Then she paused. "Though… why would you be interested?"

The Shadraehin leaned forward. "The thing is, Ashalia - Administration know about the Sanctuary. Not where it is, exactly, or how to get here. Yet. But they know it exists, and they have dedicated people trying to find a way to destroy it."

"But won’t any Administrators die if they come down here?" asked Asha.

Scyner nodded. "That’s true - we’re not worried about a direct attack, at least not yet. At the moment, Administration are focused on cutting off our supplies. Water isn’t an issue; there’s a river a little way into the catacombs that we use. Food, though… we can’t produce sufficient crops down here." He sighed. "Up in the city, Shadows are now being told that they need a letter from their employer if they want to purchase large quantities of food. We can get around that for now, but it won’t be long before Administration start making things even harder."

He shrugged. "So as you can imagine, I’ve been looking for a way to get them to leave us alone. I’ve reached out a few times, tried to negotiate, but they just aren’t willing to listen. So now, we’re keeping an eye on everyone with power in Administration. Trying to figure out a way to… force the issue."

"To blackmail them, you mean," said Asha, a little darkly.

Scyner gave her an apologetic smile. "I know it’s not the most pleasant method, but we have already tried the other avenues at our disposal." He shook his head. "Regardless. A few months ago, we noticed that the Northwarden was abandoning some of his duties. A lot of his duties, in fact - in order to focus on something else. And as it turns out, that something else was his trying to get to the bottom of the attacks."

Asha frowned. "That doesn’t sound terribly strange."

The Shadraehin raised an eyebrow. "We’re talking about the Northwarden - head of the Administrators, the man who created the Tenets. A man who hates the Gifted like few others. His looking into the attacks wasn’t unusual, but abandoning his other duties as well? It seemed odd."

Scyner smiled grimly. "And as it turns out, the more we looked into it, the more it became evident that the Northwarden was a little too interested in what was going on. Obsessed, I suppose you’d say. The man doesn’t sleep, some nights… from what we can tell he’s kept his inquiry from Administration, too. He’s been very carefully hiding the fact that he’s even interested."

He rubbed his forehead. "What we don’t know is why. We have many contacts in the palace, and even some in Administration itself - but none have been able to get the answers we need."

Asha watched him, an uneasy feeling growing in her stomach. "And how do I fit in?"

The Shadraehin looked her in the eye. "I want to tell him who you are, and where you are."

Asha just stared at him for several seconds, trying to decide if the man was making some kind of odd joke. "You cannot think I would agree to that."

Scyner just held up his hand. "Hear me out," he said calmly. "I understand the danger if Administration finds out about you… but the fact is, I don’t believe the Northwarden will tell them. He’s going to want to question you, maybe even take you back to the palace with him to keep you close. But if he turns you over to Administration then he loses that direct connection to you, has to share any information you might reveal." He shook his head. "No - it’s more than likely that he’ll keep your secret. And if he wants your cooperation, he’s going to have to let you in on his investigation. Which is your best chance of getting answers."

Asha bit her lip. "And maybe after a while, he might let slip why it’s so important to him, too."

"Exactly. Which you can then relay back to us." The Shadraehin smiled. "Once we know the details, we can hopefully use the information to force the Northwarden’s hand, get him to have Administration back off. And we would find a way to do it without implicating you, of course," he quickly assured her.

Asha frowned. "But that’s all you would use the information for?"

"That’s all," promised the Shadraehin.

Asha shook her head. "It’s a huge risk," she observed. "And even if the Northwarden doesn’t tell Administration about me, it doesn’t mean he won’t try to torture information from me himself."

The Shadraehin nodded. "I know. And I won’t force you to be a part of this," he said seriously. "But from what you were saying earlier, the Council have no leads. So if you really want to find out what happened at Caladel, this may be a chance you’re going to have to take." He paused. "I can give you time to -"

"I’ll do it," said Asha.

There had never been a question, really. She was useless sitting at the Tol, and each day that passed was another day the trail of Davian’s killer became colder. At least this way, there was a possibility she could make a difference.

"Good." The Shadraehin rose, laying a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "We will do everything we can to make sure you’re safe, Ashalia - there will always be someone keeping an eye out for you, you have my word. And if everything goes according to plan, I’ll make sure we find a way to contact you discreetly once you’re inside the palace." He wandered over to the door, whispering something into one of the guard’s ears, then turned back to her.

"Shanin here will guide you back to the Tol, and… organise an explanation for why Jin is missing," he said quietly. "Little enough time has passed since you left - your absence shouldn’t have been noticed." He gave her a polite nod in farewell. "Fates guide you, Ashalia. I hope we meet again soon."

As abruptly as that the meeting was over, and Asha was left to follow Shanin back into the Tol.

Soon she had found her way back to the familiar confines of her room.

It was late, but after sleeping earlier she wasn’t tired. She paced around for a while, then sat pensively on the bed. How long would it be before the Northwarden came to find her? Hours? Days? She glanced at the Decay Clock. Most of the night had gone; it was only a couple of hours until she had to be at the library.

She couldn’t sleep, but there was no point in wasting energy. No point in thinking about what was coming, either. She couldn’t stop it now, even if she’d wanted to.

Taking a deep, steadying breath, she lay back on the bed and settled down to wait.