k_a_webb | The World Walkers: Quiar: The Case of the Counterfeit Enchantments (part 10, 2nd continuation) (Reply)

“It’s ready.” Durai looked at the vision crystal and then at Lucille. “We’ll be able to see what happened from beginning to end, from the viewpoint of ten different guards who had all been working with me to prepare them for the possibility of us coming up against a group of Fasachis. They all knew, I think, that I’d be asking for a copy of their memories, so they made the most of every moment.”

Lucille nodded, even though she wished that they weren’t using a vision crystal. She hated them, even though they were the best way of learning about what had happened, because they made her dizzy. “Let’s get this over and done with.”

“You don’t have to go.”

“No, I don’t, but this is the easiest way for me to learn what happened to you, Durai, so I’d rather do it and deal with the discomfort rather than miss certain bits that might turn out to important in the future.”

“That’s why you’re our Moonjumper, Lucille.”

***

A ship was in the distance. Lucille knew she was seeing the same thing that Durai had seen as they made the approach towards it and she was grateful that his mind was relatively quiet. She brushed a hand through her hair as she moved with him, looking from side to side in the same way he had, because he really was making the most of every moment he was out there. Three times he thought he saw a little white mouse, but he couldn’t check to see if he was right, and if they were there he hoped that they were there to help the guards rather than hinder them, as he had a horrible feeling they were going to need all the help they could get.

Even that little time in the crystal was beginning to make Lucille feel dizzy, but she could cope with that. They kept walking, although they were moving much slower than they had before, and she knew why, because she could feel the magic coming off the ship in waves. Durai probably hadn’t been able to feel it to the same extent she could though, as she was much more sensitive to magic, and if he could feel it that should give her some understanding of how strong it was. Breathing deeply, in an attempt to make herself less nauseaus, she focused on putting one foot in front of the other, wondering how they’d all been able to keep going.

Whoever had put the magic on the ship had wanted to keep people away from it. That much was obvious even to Durai, but it didn’t stop him. He knew that was the ship and he was going to do what needed to be done, because he was going to help rid Seahorse Port of the counterfeit ring, and then he was going to take some much needed time off. He’d spend some time with his wife and children, because he missed them more than he thought was possible, due to the time he’d been spending working on the case. It was harder for Hereward though, as it made his realise what he’d missed out on as he’d always been so focused on being the best guard he could be.

Durai shook his head, trying to empty it as best he could, knowing that Lucille wasn’t going to care. That made Lucille smile. He’d always known that he was going to be sharing his memories with her, so he was making it as easy for her as possible. When she left the vision crystal she’d thank him, because it did help, although there was a part of her that was tempted to go delving deeper into his head to find out what he really thought of her. Even though everyone told her how much her help was appreciated she couldn’t help worrying they were all just telling her that, when really what they wanted was for her to go back to Athare. She managed to push the urge away, focusing on the ship once more.

From Durai’s thoughts she picked out that the ship looked very Fasachi. Unfortunately Lucille couldn’t tell the different yet and she realised once again how little she had been taught by the Council. Sighing, she let him tell her more about why it was so obviously Fasachi, knowing she needed to learn as much as she could about the hames from someone who had been learning himself for as long as he’d been a guard. He seemed to know that was what she’d be doing, so his thoughts were well ordered on the differences between ships from different hames, although it wasn’t something that everyone would notice. One of the things that made him totally certain was the smell of the wood. Each hame used a different wood for their ship building.

They kept going forward, much more slowly than they had, and Durai was more affected by the magic than he had been before. He seemed to start feeling dizzy himself. “Right, team, we knew to prepare for this.” His voice was quiet, but he knew they could all hear him. “I want half of you at the front of the ship and half of you at the back. Hereward isn’t going to know what hit him, so do your best to protect everyone. Obviously I know that isn’t going to be easy, but the more people who come out of this alive, especially as it means we’ll be able to help Peric, Lucille, and Bertram with their plans for the future.”

“You really think they’s going to Fasach?”

“Is that ship Fasachi?” The guard who’d spoken nodded. “Then, yes, I really think they’re going to Fasach, because they want to shut down this counterfeit ring as much as we do. If their next step really does have to be travelling to Fasach then that’s what they’re going to do, because it is the right thing to do.”

As the guard nodded again she felt Durai smile. “I like Lucille, though, and I don’t want her to get hurt out there.”

“None of us do, but she has Kaito’s charms, so she should be safe enough.” His eyes met with those of the other guard. “The best thing we can do is learn as much as possible about the counterfeit ring, in order to give her as much of a head start as possible, even though they already know that she’s after them.”

“How can they know?”

“A record book was stolen from the Moonjumper Bureau in Sheepshank, which makes us all think they’re after Lucille, because of what she is, so I want us to do everything we can to prepare her for what’s going to happen in Fasach and then in Theas.”

“Theas?”

“We think that will be their last stop. The magic being used is wrong for the counterfeit ring to have started in Fasach, although I’m not surprised that became their next stop. Having Fasach on your side makes a lot of sense.”

“It makes too much sense.” The guard shook his head. “I will do everything I can to help Lucille.”

“Thank you.”

“We all will, sir. Lucille has been good for Seahorse Port.”

“I’m glad you all think so.” Durai smiled. “Let’s go, then.”

After that there was silence. They kept walking towards the ship, which really didn’t seem like it was getting any closer, but that was a part of the magic. Lucille held to her heart the urge they’d all felt to help her, because it told her that she really was wanted. Her worries had been pointless. She smiled herself, feeling it as well as Durai’s, and she realised how wonderful it was to be a Moonjumper doing her job, rather than someone who had to stand back and watch what was happening. Unfortunately there wasn’t anything she would be able to do for Durai and his guards, though, as that had already happened, so she would just have to watch.

‘Actually, Lucy, you’re very lucky.’ Quiar’s voice wasn’t a surprise. ‘Merry’s vision crystal isn’t the same as the one you’d normally use, so you can change things that have happened, but you’re going to have to be very careful. This can only happen once and you can change things in such a way that something worse will happen instead.’

‘Can you help me?’

‘Sorry, this is entirely down to you. I know it’s not fair, but that’s the way things work.’

‘No, I was expecting it, Quiar, so it’s fine. I do thank you for telling me that I can change things.’

‘You’re welcome, Lucy. I’ll talk to you soon. There are some things I need to tell you before you leave for Fasach, because my connection to you will be much weaker there and I’m not certain I’ll be able to help you as much.’

‘Why?’

‘It has to do with the hame. I’ll explain it to you when we have time, I promise, but for now you need to focus.’

Mirrored from K. A. Webb Writing.