Palimpsest

Every kingdom on the continent surrendered its histories to the Ledger's keeping, in exchange for the order that keeping provided. Nirali alone refused, and kept its own. The archive that resulted is the only collection of records the Ledger has never been permitted to audit, correct, or copy. Scholars who wish to consult the true accounts of the early ages must travel to Nirali to do so, because the versions held elsewhere have all passed through the same hands.

What cannot be reached must be trusted. The continent has trusted Nirali for four hundred years to hold its histories true, and has had no way, in all that time, to confirm that it does. The keepers consider this trust the most valuable thing the city possesses.

—A History of the Keeping of Records. Author unknown. Held only in the Nirali archive; no copy is known to exist elsewhere.

Chapter 44 A Quiet Morning

A faint redness had appeared in the sky first, and then golden shafts of light had begun all at once to illuminate the city. As Kaelin watched this view from the window, the mornings of Marialis came back to her. The noise and the chaos that had been there seemed almost nonexistent here. It was as though the city, rather than springing into motion the moment it woke, first let the sun warm its eyelids and spread across its skin. Apart from the sound of the water running through the canals, the faint cries of gulls from the harbor and the creak of a few shutters opening could be heard.

She had looked at the dresses left in the room before her—most of them, tellingly, red—and had picked the dark emerald-green one from among them and pulled it on the moment she got out of bed. She didn't feel rested, and she knew she would pay the price for sleeping so little. But even so, for the first time in a long while, she had felt that she could breathe outside her own mind, if only for a few hours. And she owed that to the woman still asleep in the bed. Even though she didn't think it had been the right decision.

Turning her back to the day, Kaelin leaned against the edge of the window and this time began to watch Elis. Half of the body lying face-down and stretched out in the tangled bed was covered only by the sheet wound around her. With the daylight, Kaelin first traced the line of the back where the shadow fell, the disordered hair, the smooth skin. Then the room, growing brighter still, began to bring another story to light as well. Half-healed bruises, bandages—one on the ankle, one on the arm—and a cut scabbing over on the shoulder.

Kaelin had come through a great many things in the past two weeks, but what this woman had come through was, to her mind, on another level entirely. That she had come all the way to her room and made the first move, despite the trauma of that moment of violence and helplessness, had made Kaelin think she was far braver than herself. To dare to stay defenseless in front of someone after what she had been through… As she looked at her, Kaelin sighed again. And some of the small moments passing through the corner of her mind began to rise to the surface. Elis's lips roaming over her body, leaving no place untouched. The taste of the wine she had taken from those lips. Her fingers ran through Elis's hair as Kaelin pressed her head down between her legs. The moans in the dark. The silence that came after, her sweat-damp body, and the lips she felt on her body once more…

A small, uncertain smile appeared on Kaelin's face, and she felt herself growing warm again inside. Then, drawing a deep breath, she rose from the window and straightened her dress. She wet her hands with the water in the deep bowl on the little table and ran them over her neck to cool down. Just as she was beginning to think about what to do, a tapping sound came. At first Kaelin thought it had come from outside, but when she heard it again she realized it was coming from the door. She quickly headed to the door and, taking care not to make a sound, drew the bolt. She opened the door just as carefully, slowly, and found before her a young man who looked to be in his early twenties.

"I'm sorry to disturb you at this early hour, ma'am, but…" he began, a little out of breath and a little hesitant. But before he finished his sentence his eye slid inside and he saw Elis in the bed. He seemed to forget for a moment what he was going to say.

"But?" Kaelin cut in, tilting her head to the side to block the man's view. But there was a faint smile on her face rather than annoyance, for she had found the young man's nervousness rather sweet.

"Uhm," the man said, gathering himself, and with a slight bow introduced himself, "I'm Lexim Sornok, the general assistant of the archive."

"Pleased to meet you, Lexim," Kaelin said, still keeping up her playful manner, and held out her hand to the man. "I'm—"

"I know who you are, of course," Lexim cut in, then clasped Kaelin's hand in both of his, "it's an honor to meet you."

"Thank you for your kindness, but you still haven't told me why you're at my door at the crack of dawn," Kaelin answered, no longer in a playful mood.

"Oh yes, sorry," Lexim said, letting go of her hand. "My master asked me to give you this and said it was important." He held out to Kaelin an envelope, carefully folded down to a size that would fit in the palm and sealed with wax. "If you hadn't opened the door, I was going to slip it under the door."

Taking the envelope and examining it, Kaelin asked, without looking at the man, "Your master?"

"Master Trenkish. The director of the archive and the library."

At this answer Kaelin struggled for a brief moment to put the pieces together, but finally said, "Nivela?" and raised her head to look at the man. The man nodded in confirmation. Kaelin broke the seal, opened the paper, and read the message inside:

The Ledger is much closer than we thought, and I think they have a great plan. I don't believe there's anyone else in the city I can trust. Please come find me at the archive at the first chance you get. The symbol you saw in the caves may have a connection to this as well. —Nivela

After reading the message Kaelin looked at the man again and caught Lexim by the shoulder as he gave a parting nod and turned to go. "Wait a moment."

"Yes, ma'am?"

"Can you take me to the archive? I don't know the way."

"Of course," Lexim said, smiling. "I was going to the library anyway. It's the building right next to the archive."

"Thank you. Wait a little, I'll be right out," Kaelin said, touching the man's shoulder again. Then she closed the door for a short while and put on her sandals. After that she looked at the bed and at Elis, who was still asleep. She wrote a note on a piece of paper lying on the little table at the bedside and set the oil lamp on top of it so it wouldn't blow away. She studied Elis one last time, then went to the door with quick, quiet steps and left the room.

…

When they reached the building's entrance hall together with Lexim at her side, they ran into Orsillia, who had come from the opposite direction and turned toward the stairs going up to the floor above. Both of them paused before the woman with a similar reluctance.

"Good morning," Orsillia said with her usual courteous voice, smiling at Kaelin. With her dress and her hair she looked nothing like someone who had just woken. "You're up early. There's still time for breakfast. But if you have some other business…" she added at the end, turning to Lexim.

Lexim tensed and, while he hesitated to answer, Kaelin replied, "Good morning. Since I couldn't sleep much, I wanted to take a tour of the city." Then she caught Lexim by the arm, "Lexim agreed to guide me. He's going to take me as far as the library. I'll probably make it back for breakfast, but there's no need to wait for me."

"The morning air is my favorite thing here too," Orsillia answered, after studying them both for a moment. "It made me happy that you're so eager about the city."

"I've been curious about the city ever since I arrived, anyway. So I wanted to go on a little tour this morning," Kaelin said, relaxing a little.

"I won't keep you, then," Orsillia said, and gave a curtsey and went on walking toward the stairs.

Kaelin and Lexim breathed a sigh of relief and headed toward the exit. "Thank you," Lexim said in a whisper. "I admire Domina Orsillia, but up close she always frightens me."

"She's actually a very kind and gracious woman, but I agree with you on that," Kaelin answered.

Orsillia, who stopped halfway up the stairs and watched them hurry out, went on climbing with a thoughtful expression on her face.

…

Losing herself in the streets that looked as though they had been carefully laid out, heading into the heart of the city, Kaelin had not seen even a single ramshackle house. The streets, contrary to what Kaelin had expected, were not entirely uphill. For the city, built at the foot of the mountain, had a sloping structure. They had solved this with a system of tiers. The city was made up of grounds leveled out in layers, and the streets were generally flat. There were sloping streets too, but usually one descended to a lower tier by stairs. The people, whose numbers were slowly increasing, walked without hurry along the streets and the stairs, even stopping to chat. Those sitting and talking on the stairs were not few either. The soldiers responsible for security could be told apart only by the long, thin swords at their waists and the red bands on their arms. Unlike in Marialis, instead of walking in a group all but blocking the road, they had mingled in among the people. And the people were not in the least disturbed by this. There was nothing to make them tense; everything was normal. But what was normal for them might seem strange to a great many others. Their clothing and their look especially.

Many people were dressed in all colors, and Kaelin had never before seen so many races together. What's more, the disputes that usually occurred were absent here as well. A dwarf resting while wiping off sweat in front of the bread oven was greeting an elf woman passing by. A burly orc opening up his sweet shop and a gnome who looked to be his partner were whistling as they cleaned. Two elf women with brightly colored hair passing in front of her hand in hand was what made Kaelin stop. For a while Kaelin watched them walk with a faint, indistinct longing. Then, at Lexim calling out to her, she gathered herself and went on walking.

Many of the buildings were no more than houses of two stories at most, but among these there were far larger ones. These looked as though they had been built for some particular reason or service, and almost all of them had red decorations on their walls that seemed like the Red Lantern's signature. Some were giant structures that looked like several buildings joined together, while others were smaller but wide buildings taller than three stories. Passing through a side street and coming down the stairs, they had arrived in front of two giant buildings. Both of the buildings were at least four stories high and round in shape. Instead of a roof, both had giant glass domes. There was plenty of greenery around the buildings; in fact, the space between them was entirely covered with grass. Because the buildings were circular, this space was not a long corridor but a sunlit park. The trees and the seating set in their shade fairly drew in anyone who looked. Above the garden there was a bridge that stood open to the air like a balcony, and from the look of it served as a passage connecting the two buildings to each other.

"We're finally here," Lexim said, and turned to Kaelin with the green garden behind him. He pointed to his right. "This is the archive building," and then gestured to the other building, "and this is the library."

"Thank you," Kaelin said, smiling, though her eye was on the park behind the man. "I can find my way from here, I expect."

"Once you go into the building, if you walk straight across to the far side, you can find Master Trenkish's office," Lexim said, and gave a slight bow. Then he began walking toward the other building.

Kaelin watched him go for a while, then studied the inviting garden and the graceful bridge passing over it. What a beautiful place to live, she thought to herself. The people, the order, the calm, the greenery, the sea air, and, most of all, the feeling of freedom. After that she sighed and headed toward the entrance of the archive.

At the entrance, reached by three steps, there were trees that looked as though they had been carefully placed on either side of the door, and seating in their shade. A young blonde woman sitting in one of them, with her legs crossed, was eating something. The woman, clearly a guard from the band on her arm, greeted Kaelin and went on with her meal. Kaelin, for her part, smiled at the woman reflexively. Then she went in through the two-part door that stood wide open.

Kaelin, who had expected an entrance hall or rooms at the entrance, stepped into an enormous chamber. For as soon as she went in she saw that the building was almost a single great space. The shelves filled with scrolls and papers that began on either side circled the whole building and joined together on the far side. The shelves had been set facing one another, and so, forming a natural corridor, they ran all the way around the floor. What's more, these corridors continued for three more stories, rising up to the ceiling. Essentially the edges of the building were made of rings stacked one on top of another, four stories high and at least ten paces wide. Because the shelves were arranged with gaps, the corridors on the upper floors could be seen from below as well. Though they weren't lit at the moment, the red lanterns spaced among them caught the eye too.

Kaelin went on walking with heavy steps as she looked at the upper mezzanines, gazing in amazement at the size of the building. When she turned her head forward, she saw that the empty part left in the middle was covered with a host of tables and work areas on the ground. The flowers in the large vases had added a freshness to the space too. But the thing that really drew the eye was the statue on the pedestal right in the center and the tree of glass behind it. The statue resembled a slender elf man and was made of stone. The glass tree behind it reached almost to the third story, its great branches covering the area above the work space and stretching toward the corridors at the sides. The light coming from the glass dome lit the interior, but the tree spread this light through almost the whole building, as it were, leaving no dark spot.

Passing by the pedestal as she looked up with her mouth open, Kaelin finally bumped into a chair and pulled herself together. In that moment she noticed there were a few other people in the building as well. They all seemed to be occupied with their own business. Two more people were coming in through the door, too. After looking around her, Kaelin saw that on the far side, where the shelf corridors joined, there was a room. Or at least she thought so, for there was a door in the middle but its sides were covered with shelves. The room seemed almost hidden among these shelves. Heading toward the door, just as Kaelin was reaching out her hand, she saw that there were other things on the shelves besides scrolls. She looked more carefully at something that resembled a block formed by a stack of papers held together. This must be a book, she whispered to herself as she touched the leather binding. She had heard tell of them but had never seen one before.

When she made to take hold of the book she had touched, Kaelin heard the sound of something falling inside. Then she let it go and opened the door with curiosity. All the walls of the small room the door opened onto were made of shelves, and they were all full of scrolls and books. But the inside was almost as though it had been ransacked, and on the floor many scrolls lay unrolled and books scattered about. When she took a step, Kaelin froze where she stood as if her insides had turned to ice. On the floor in front of the shelves on the right side, Nivela lay covered in blood. As she barely drew breath, her eyes found Kaelin, and forcing herself, she reached out her hand to her.

At this Kaelin rushed quickly to her side and dropped to the floor. "No, no, no!" she cried out in panic. Not knowing what she should do, she looked at her body. But the dagger driven like a sword into Nivela's small body showed there was not much that could be done. For a moment Kaelin gripped the dagger, but realizing it was a bad idea, she let it go.

Nivela grasped her hand and, forcing herself, tried to speak. "You have to stop their plan." She tried to swallow but coughed blood. "Don't trust anyone," she said, and went on coughing.

In that moment Lexim appeared at the door. "I thought there were scrolls I needed to take from here…" Unable to finish his sentence, he went into shock at the sight. "Master," he said with eyes full of terror, then looked at Kaelin, who was crouched beside her and covered in blood.

"Lex," Nivela said, looking toward the door with a rattle, and opened her hand as if trying to reach out to him. Her eyes turned to Kaelin, full of tears. "Don't let him…" she said, but before she could finish her words she drew her last breath.

"What have you done?" Lexim cried out at Kaelin. Then, though Kaelin tried to step in, he repeated it even more violently. "What have you done?" His voice echoed through the great chamber. Then, "Guard!" he shouted outside.

"No, I didn't do this!" Kaelin tried to defend herself, but Lexim went on shouting.

When those nearby came running to the door, Kaelin still had not left Nivela's side. Though she raised her hand to the people with terror-filled eyes and tried to explain herself, no one was listening to her. Finally the guard she had seen at the door burst inside and, after a moment's shock, made for Kaelin. The woman, seizing Kaelin by the wrist, hauled her up by force and began dragging her to the door. Kaelin resisted and shouted "No," and tried to reach toward Nivela's body. The guard finally drove a strange needle she'd taken from the pouch at her waist into Kaelin's arm. At this Kaelin felt a tingling spread through her body, and the strength in her arms went out of her all at once. As her eyes closed, the last thing she saw before she lost consciousness was Nivela's lifeless body and her outstretched, reaching hand.