Raven's Strike (Raven #2)(119)

It was later than it ought to have been, because they'd spent a couple of hours in the Merchant District, where the entrances to the shops had been curtains rather than doors. Most of the curtains left a space above the floor that they could slide under.

Some of the shops had been just like their counterparts in Taela, some had not. Phoran had been particularly struck by the mercantile that had fabrics the like of which he'd never seen before. There were brocades and velvets, but also some sort of shiny fabric with a luster like a silk, but it changed colors from gold to green, depending on what angle he viewed it from.

Toarsen teased Phoran because of his fascination with some of the more exotic fabrics - but he'd always had a flair for fashion and saw no need to change his mode of dress simply because he'd become respectable. His only regret was due to the nature of the spell holding Colossae, all of the fabrics were stiff as wood, and it was impossible to tell how they would feel against skin.

"They had knowledge that was too dangerous," continued Toarsen, and Phoran pulled himself away from his daydream. Some men dream of fair women, he thought with self-directed humor; he dreamed of fabrics.

"Speaking the true names of the gods is a bad thing - " Toarsen continued as self-appointed lecturer. " - but not being able to call upon them if you needed to was equally bad. So they engraved the names on the Owl's dais backward and colored it so most of the indentations aren't easily seen. Then we come along with a white shirt - "

"My white shirt," said Rufort in a not-quite-whining tone. "I hope that char comes out because I only brought one other shirt."

"I can clean it," said Rinnie, sounding resigned. "Mother can, too - but she'll give the chore to me. She doesn't like laundry or sewing."

"At least she doesn't make you butcher the pig," said Lehr.

" - With Rufort's white shirt," continued Toarsen cheerfully over the top of all the others, "and a charred piece of firewood, and now we have the names of the gods." He held the shirt up so they could see them more clearly.

"Ielian," called Lehr, "you're going the wrong way."

Phoran looked away from the shirt and saw Ielian ahead of them. He must have kept walking while Toarsen paused to admire the rubbings on Rufort's shirt. Ielian must not have heard Lehr's call because he disappeared down the street he'd chosen without pausing.

"Remind me not to bet on Ielian if he decides to run in a maze race," said Kissel in disgust. "I suppose we'd better go get him." He looked down. "Come, Rinnie Tieragansdaughter, let's go rescue Ielian."

"It's Seraphsdaughter," she told him in a patient voice.

He nodded. "But Tier is the one people really need to worry about - and I suspect that there will be a lot of young men worried about you one of these years, lady."

Rinnie looked pleased.

They came to the street Ielian had taken and found him engrossed in the elaborate carving on the door of a house that stood next to a narrow ally.

"Ielian," called Phoran. "Lehr says this is the wrong way."

"You have to come here," he replied. "I've never seen anything like this."

They were within a few yards of Ielian, who was still absorbed in whatever had caught his attention, when Phoran saw Lehr stiffen, sniffing the air.

"What's wrong, Lehr?" Phoran asked.

"Run!" said Lehr, his voice urgent.

"Stop," said another, almost-familiar voice.

Phoran, who would have rather followed Lehr's advice, found himself helpless to do anything except follow the second command. His body refused to move.

"We should try an easy one first."

Seraph had the Ordered gems spread out on a blanket from her bedroll. She began sorting them quickly into piles according to Order. Hennea, sitting on the other side of the blanket, began helping.

"I meant to ask," Seraph inquired as she put a ruby necklace in the Falcon's pile. "Why are there so many fewer Larks than, say, Ravens?"

"For magic to work," Hennea answered, "the Order could be a very small part of the Raven's power. It is the ability to work magic - not magic itself. So there are more Ravens, each with the smallest part of a god of any Order - and it is Raven who is most easily bound to the gems. Healing is different. There were always only a few Larks, because a lesser gift would not have functioned."

"So the Lark gems failed," Seraph said. "As they were meant to fail."

She used her seeing spell so she could see spirit again. The small pile of Lark gems lit up with spirit, brighter by far than any of the others.

"Their Order holds more tightly to the spirit," she told Hennea. "And so the rings behave as if they are haunted." She picked up the tigereye that used to warm to her touch. "I wonder if this is my daughter's Order?" she asked.

Tier's hands closed over her shoulders, as Hinnum said, "I don't think there's a way to tell."

"We should begin with the Ravens," said Hennea. She picked up a brooch set with a pale green peridot that had only the faintest wisp of spirit.

Some of the gems were still in their settings, but others had been in armbands or heavy jewelry that were bulky and made them difficult to conceal. They, Hennea, Brewydd, and she, had pried the stones out of the largest settlings.