Vacation V (The Final Gathering)

(( CHAPTER 14: THE FINAL GATHERING ))

She remembered the rest dimly. She'd carried the unconscious body of her friend to the doorway at the top of the stairs, then somehow gathered the concentration necessary to have it send them back to the chamber. Richard had taken Jacob from her then, and carried him to the infirmary. She'd followed, shouting something (she didn't remember what), and Savant had taken her aside at that point, injected her with something, and given one of the infirmary beds to her.

When she came to and saw that every bed was in use and others which needed one weren't getting it, her first resolution was to find Savant and punch him in the face. The infirmary was packed with the wounded – the armies of the Unknowable having apparently been successful in even their decoy attacks. She got up and her bed was quickly taken by another. She searched the beds and, eventually, found Jacob in one. The one that had been Chad's, for that matter. Richard was standing, hands on the railing, much as he had been earlier that very day.

“Is he okay?” she asked, her voice weak.

Richard looked up from his reverie. “Alyssa, glad you're up.” he turned his gaze back to Jacob, who appeared to be sleeping peacefully. There was a blindfold over his eyes, but other than the ritual mutilation, he appeared to be in perfect health. “He's been out of it this whole time. Savant says he's not hurt too bad, besides the obvious. He's not sure how it'll end up, though.”

Richard himself appeared much the worse for the wear. He had a number of bruises and unhealed cuts, and when he moved she could tell he did so with a limp. The sling he ought to have his arm in still hung at his neck. Even so, Alyssa had the feeling he'd gotten off lightly.

“What's the plan now?” she asked the councilman.

Richard shrugged, though he had to do so slowly to prevent further injuries from occurring. “Not everyone's back. As soon as Yael gets in we'll probably have another council meeting to figure a course of action.” Unspoken was the idea that she might not return at all.

Alyssa frowned and started walking out of the infirmary.

“What's your plan?” Richard asked after her.

“I'm getting some answers.” she replied.

It took her a while to remember the way; it'd been a long time since she'd been there, after all. She followed the new senses that her attunement had granted her, though, and so found her way faster than she might have otherwise.

The room was as she remembered it, though slightly dustier from disuse. Since the harpy, the glass cubes hadn't hosted any prisoners. That had changed, though – just as she had commanded, John had locked himself up. He seemed to be alternately fuming and laughing hysterically. Alyssa had time to wonder if she'd get any useful information out of him, and then he took notice of her.

“Ah, slaver, you return. What petty deed will you have me accomplish next? Do you need the lawn mowed, or perhaps dishes cleaned?” His grotesque tongue lolled out.

“I'll have answers. I got Jacob back, what did your people want with him?”

He laughed. “I do not know! How it delights me not to know, to be able to stymie your efforts, bound to you though I am! The Voice has said nothing to me of him, and It wouldn't, either, because it knows of your hold over me.”

“His eyes are missing.” she spat back at him. “Why?”

His laughter died, replaced with annoyance that he had to answer something. “It sounds as though he were undergoing the process of becoming one of us. Was he marked? Did they score his skin?” he rubbed his cracked hands together in glee at the prospect of harm coming to her friends.

“No. Just his eyes.”

“The ritual is incomplete, then.” he said soberly, then giggled. “When he was robbed of his sight, though, he was given the Voice. It will speak to him of everything imaginable, and it will drive him mad. The ritual is just that, slaver, it is the Voice which does the actual work of making us what we are.” he was smiling, what rotten teeth remained sticking out at all angles from his diseased gums.

“How do I stop it?” she demanded.

He laughed again, a noise which was becoming more grating each time she heard it, and he seemed to be getting much to revel in from this news. “It cannot be stopped! Remember that I am bound to tell you the truth, and I tell you now: The Voice of the Unknown will corrupt him, and he shall become a soldier in the Army of the Unknowable. It is inevitable and unavoidable.”

“It is avoidable.” she grated her teeth. “I can go into that infirmary and end it now.” She tried to stop tears from forming in her eyes, unwilling to concede to the monster how much the idea horrified her.

John got quiet, apparently waging some sort of inner conflict. Finally, he whispered: “You would do such a thing? You are quick to waste your gifts, slaver.”

Her eyes narrowed. He hadn't had to say that, she knew. He'd volunteered the information. “What do you mean?” she said finally.

“You do not trust me, and you are wise to.” he replied. “But I hear the Voice. If so commanded, I would tell you what it said, and it cannot keep from me any secrets, as it must speak to all of us. This would be invaluable to you, but coming from me you would not trust it. It would nag at you, cause you to doubt.

“Imagine, then, that such advice came from one you trust? Jacob you have known for years, you do not doubt his devotion to you. His conversion is incomplete, and he did not go voluntarily – it will take him time to turn on you. In the meantime, you will have valuable information.” John smiled.

“How can I trust him, though? He'll become one of you, after all.” she said angrily.

“Why,” the abberation replied, cackling, “do you think I'm laughing?”

She left, then, the abrasive laughter of her mad thrall echoing behind her. She couldn't concentrate – her options were to use her closest friend as a spy and then kill him when he inevitably betrayed her, or to simply kill him now and put him out of his misery.

“Alyssa, that you?” the croak came from Jacob's bed. His bandaged head was facing her, though, and a weak smile was on his face. “It's so nice to see you again. Well, not see, but you're here.”

Alyssa nearly teared up again as he spoke to her. He was okay! Something terrible was going to happen to him, there was nothing she could do to help, but right now he was alive and all right. “Yeah, Jacob, it's me.”

“What's the doctor say?” he said. Savant pretended to a lot of roles in the chamber.

“Other than the eyes, you're all right.” she tried to sound cheerful, tried to sound upbeat for him, but her heart was shattering.

“And what's our resident wacko say?”

She frowned. “Sorry, that was Savant who said you'd be all right.”

He shook his head. “Not Savant. Richard tells me we have that limbless friend of yours trapped back there somewhere. What'd he say?”

She sighed. “Do you hear the Voice?” she asked quietly.

He regarded her with silence. Before, when they drove together, silence was a comfortable thing. Now it was cold and seemed to speak of the greater hopelessness they found themselves in.

Finally: “Yeah. I wasn't sure at first what it was, but yeah, it's the Voice the sightless say they hear. It's real. I don't hear much yet, but it told me when you came in the room. Tells me where you are, too. Tells me what color shirt you're wearing... everything I can't see, it's constantly telling me about. There's more, too, a lot more. That damn hymn they're always singing is in the background, for one. If I knew how to listen I'd know more, but I'm afraid to.”

“His name's John Slayton.” she started. “My claws absorbed his blood, and I knew his true name as a result. I don't pretend to understand it, but I certainly wasn't going to ask questions.”

“I take it his prognosis was not quite so glowing?”

Alyssa shook her head. “He claimed it was inevitable, that you'll become one of them.”

Jacob's tone hardened. “That's not going to happen. I wouldn't let it happen. Even if it did, you wouldn't let it get that far. I'm thinking it should even have a chance to start, personally.”

He'd known what she'd been thinking, somehow. “I'm not going to kill you.” she said with finality. “I can't.”

“Alyssa, the person you knew... the person I think I am for who knows how much longer, that person is doomed. The Voice is pressing on me. It has goals I don't understand, and I play a part in it. I can shut it out, but it won't let up, not ever. How long do I have?”

Alyssa paused, debating with herself. Finally: “John said there was another option. He can hear the Voice, but he knows I'd never trust him. You, though... I know you, Jacob. I trust you.”

Jacob slowly smiled. “A spy. You want me to be a spy?” he nearly laughed. “I love it. Using their own insane plans against them. You get Savant's permission, and I'm in.” He thought for a moment, then appended “Actually, I don't care if we get approval. I'm still in.”

Savant himself came back into the room, then, writing furiously in the same book Alyssa had seen him with previously. He didn't seem to be paying attention to them, but he'd probably come into the infirmary for a reason.

“When can I get up?” Jacob asked him, startling him from his reverie.

“Huh? How should I know? I'm not a doctor.” Savant's reply seemed about as well reasoned as anything he usually said. “Can you walk? If so, great.” he turned back to his book.

Alyssa laughed lightly, and Jacob propped himself up by the rails. He put a hand out to where she stood, and she pulled as he climbed out of bed.

“Well?” she asked, “how are you?”

He frowned. “I'm not dizzy. I thought I would be – hell, I should be. Everything's fine, though.” He took a few steps forward, weakly at first but rapidly gaining in confidence. He put a hand out to touch the wall. “Right where it said it would be.” he mumbled.

He turned to Alyssa. “I can't see, but that damn Voice I'm listening in on is telling me everything anyway. Bed's right there, “ he pointed back to his former resting place, “you're there, our struggling author is over there” each gesture he made was dead-on accurate, though Savant seemed somewhat offended by his new title. He turned to Alyssa. “Throw something at me.”

Alyssa stopped the retort which came to her lips. Throw something at him, was he crazy? Of course, she knew why he wanted this. His new sense was telling him the layout of things, but was it fast enough to respond to something moving? Specifically, something moving toward him? So instead of saying something, she took an empty paper cup, crumpled it, and threw it hard toward his head.

He dodged it. If anything, he was faster than he'd been before. His head turned back to her and he smiled. “Not bad, huh?” He nodded in answer to himself. “Okay, you've got me convinced. You're my partner again.”

It was a ridiculous statement, but Jacob had been the only partner Alyssa had ever known, and so he was entitled to say such things. She smiled. “Nice of you to let me tag along.”

“My pleasure.”

Savant had left, scribbling in his book the entire time and not paying them any attention whatsoever. Gideon had taken his place at some point, glaring at them impatiently. Both Alyssa and Jacob were so used to ignoring his gruff manner that they hadn't even realized he'd entered.

“The Council is meeting again.” he said, as unfriendly as ever. “Now that you're walking and talking, they'll want to see you, too.” he nodded in Jacob's direction. “And you're the toast of the meeting.” he frowned toward Alyssa, obviously grouchy with anything that disturbed the normal operation of things. He couldn't have been happy at all lately.

“We'll be there at once.” Jacob's voice betrayed no hint of offense or weakness, and he headed out of the infirmary. Alyssa darted after him, afraid that he'd trip over something or get lost despite the previous evidence to the contrary. He walked with confidence, with surety. Before, when he'd led her through the twisting maze of passages that made up the chamber, he'd always known where to go, had never hesitated. She thought his injury would have changed him, but even without his sight he had never been more sure-footed.

The sense of wrongness she had used to find the Sightless that had captured him to begin with, which had led her to the cages which kept John, that same sense twinged slightly now whenever she was near Jacob. Something was not exactly right, it said. She knew. He heard the Voice of the Unknown, and some day it would claim him.

That day wasn't today, though, judging from his strength in the wake of what he'd been through. It wasn't even soon. The Voice would have to work for years, perhaps decades, to break him down. Though it would happen, in the meantime he'd do everything possible to fight it.

Jacob entered the lobby which featured Savant's increasingly disorderly book pile and table full of unreadable notes. Its keeper was nowhere to be found, but Jacob didn't hesitate. Behind him, Alyssa couldn't help but marvel at his rapidity. It was the same as ever, of course, he'd always been prompt in answering the Council's summons, but he should have been slowed a little!

Behind her, she could hear Gideon trying to catch up to them. Perhaps Jacob didn't want to look weak in front of him. That, certainly, was understandable. Or maybe he, like her, was keeping ahead to just avoid him. The thought made her grin.

Jacob hadn't missed a step – he'd pushed open the door to the council's chambers, presented himself within. Alyssa stood next to him as she so often had in the past. Gideon, grumbling something under his breath, walked forward to his seat on the council and took it. The rest of them were already there – Yael was talking animately with Katherine, Richard had placed his wounded arm back in its sling, and Gideon was glaring at everyone impatiently. Only Chad was missing. She frowned as she thought back to her time in the infirmary. It had been filled to capacity and then some, and she hadn't looked around closely, but the bed Jacob had been using was the one she'd seen Chad confined to what felt like ages ago. Chad hadn't been anywhere, at least that she'd seen. She hadn't given it much thought at the time, her worry being reserved more for her closer friend, but now it gnawed at her. She supposed she'd thought he'd recovered. That he was still missing from the assembly, though, seemed to bode worse.

Savant walked in and took a seat which he himself had brought in with him. This appeared to satisfy Yael that everyone who needed to be was there. She said a few more words to Katherine, then raised her voice to address them all.

“Councilmen, thank you for coming.” she said. “Savant, your input is valued as well. Alyssa, we are overwhelmed with gladness to see your return, and Jacob we are glad to see you at all. I feared we might never speak again.”

She didn't stop to allow anyone a response, and Alyssa could guess why; though she'd mentioned the positives, there were many many bad things which had befallen all of them. She was either unwilling to dwell on them, or was about to start the dwelling with her next sentence.

“Our troubles are far from over, I regret to say.”

The latter, it would appear, Alyssa found herself thinking.

“I don't know how many storms were spawned in the latest attack. Too many for us. Though our chamber held against attack, many of the cities we sought to rescue failed in the face of such an onslaught. There are many of our people who are still unaccounted for, and sadly it seems that everyone who is going to return has done so.

“Even those of us who have survived have not done so easily. We have all of us been wounded in some way, some forced to endure terrible trials merely to remain in our world,” with this she glanced at Alyssa. News traveled fast, she found herself thinking. Likely their limbless friend in the cages had been shouting to anyone who would come near. If Yael noticed her uncomfortable reaction, she made no sign but instead continued speaking. “And some of us have endured torture and mutilation at the hands of our enemy, and yet still survived.”

Jacob did not react, and Alyssa was beginning to realize that he didn't seem to think his ordeal had actually been that overwhelming. There had been pain, but Jacob was no stranger to pain. He had lost his sight and gained as its replacement a very dangerous sense which he couldn't fully rely on, and which would – given time – drive him mad and force him to slay his former friends if they didn't do it first. This, too, he took with stoicism. He didn't want to be seen as different, she realized. He had a job to do, and he wanted to do it while he still could.

“We've lost many we counted as friends. Councilman Chad passed on while we left – the machines which sustained him failed during the power outage at the peak of the attack. Countless other Gifted are missing. The assault seems to have been broken, but there will be more. Savant's prophecy seems to be coming to a head.” she nodded toward him. “You had words to say on that matter, I seem to recall?”

Savant stood up and, for the first time in what Alyssa judged was quite a while, set his book aside. “I believe I have misinterpreted part of our prophecy.”

Alyssa fought the urge to roll her eyes. Though Savant's advice had allowed them to stop this most recent bout of storms, he kept continually changing his mind when it came to who, exactly, was the chosen one of the prophecy.

“Do you recall, perhaps thirty years ago, one who came to us claiming to know a terrible secret? He was gifted himself, though he didn't seem to be willing to show us much.”

Yael and Gideon nodded, for the rest this event had apparently been before their time. Yael spoke up. “I don't recall his name, but yes, I think I know who you're talking about. He left for a monastery, didn't he?”

Savant nodded. “Yes. I believe now that the prophecy may have been speaking of him. His gifts were unconventional, and he knew many things he should not have. I do not know that he had such control over order and chaos as I've indicated, but it is a lead I feel we must follow.”

“Yes.” Yael said, apparently pondering.

Gideon frowned. “I must object! We are too soon from our last encounter to weaken ourselves further by sending others out. Savant, you told us that Yael was the topic of your prophecy, did you not?”

“Well, yes, but -”

“And now you're telling us it's someone else, someone we don't even have contact with anymore?”

“It could be! I'm not saying I'm certain, I'm merely claiming it's a lead which we should investigate!” Savant seemed somewhat frustrated by his colleague's inability to understand. Alyssa had never actually seen him angry, the closest Savant ever came was frustration when whoever he was talking to failed to either understand or appreciate the topic.

Alyssa neglected to mention that Savant had said she was the chosen one at some point as well. Whenever Jacob was about to say something unkind about the man, he always prefaced it with “I know Savant's a good friend of yours” or something along those lines, and it was true. Though she'd known him her entire career here and he'd proved invaluable in the past, even she had to admit that lately his prophetic power seemed somewhat lacking. Of course, that was the nature of prophecy – especially those he'd cooked up.

Gideon appeared to be on the verge of another outburst, but Yael finally raised her hand to put an end to the spat. “This is, “she said, “to be expected, I suppose. Gideon, Savant's words have allowed us to survive the storm. I am not, myself, a strong believer in that which is foreseen – for even the most practiced seer can be mislead or misunderstand the signs. Yet, Savant has been correct. We cannot afford to start doubting now. Savant, choose those who would go to the monastery to speak to our wayward Gifted.”

Savant nodded. “I would like Alyssa and Jacob to investigate this.”

Gideon, apparently unhappy with not haven spoken for longer than a minute, voiced his objection. “I insist to be brought along.” there was a pause while he specifically did not say why.

It took more than a carefully worded silence to fool Yael, though. “Gideon, Jacob and Alyssa are more than adequate to the task. They can easily protect themselves, as they have shown numerous times in the past.”

There had been an edge to Yael's voice, but the other councilman had either not heard it or chosen to ignore it. “I have no doubt over Alyssa's ability to keep herself safe. But once before has Jacob fallen into the hands of our enemies. It would not be wise to allow him to return so easily.”

Richard stood up then, glaring at Gideon fiercely. “You imply betrayal?” he spoke simply, his tongue acid.

“I am simply saying that the enemy might not be content to simply let Jacob go.” Gideon's voice had turned sweet and reasonable, which was far more frightening than his usual belligerent tone. “It would be in our interest and his for him to be here, where he can be... watched.”

Katherine typically backed Gideon's assertions in the council, as they both tended to agree that aggressive action against their enemy was needed to keep it off-balance. This time, though, she looked thoughtful.

“Alyssa,” she asked. “do you trust your partner, even in his current state?”

“Yes.” Alyssa answered immediately. “I trust him with my life.”

“I do not!” Gideon roared. “I do not wish to inflate your ego, Alyssa, but you are too valuable to risk. There are fewer of us, now that the storms have taken their fill, and we need the experienced and talented to help regroup. To put you not only in danger's way, but with someone whose loyalty is in question is sheer lunacy!”

Richard spoke up again, never having sat down. “Jacob's loyalty is not in question!”

“You know damn well it is!” Gideon yelled back. The council had had their arguments before, but rarely had they become shouting matches. Even Gideon's fame temper had been less explosive in the past.

“Alyssa,” Katherine spoke again as though her line of questioning had not been interrupted. “if our worst fears should be true – and even you, Richard, must admit somewhere that you fear this – and Jacob should not be trustworthy, are you prepared to end his life?”

The shouting evaporated. Gideon glanced toward Katherine, eyebrows raised, as a newfound respect for her questioning found its way into his face. Richard, on the other hand, was making a very visible effort not to shout a retort. Yael was sitting forward, an intense look on her face.

It was not Alyssa who spoke, then, but Jacob. He stepped forward. “I am trustworthy. You can believe this because I say it is the case, and I am still Jacob Keynes, a man you all know. When I am no longer Jacob, you will also know then, because no matter how good a chameleon the impostor who wears my body is, you will know the difference. Alyssa will likely be the first to know. And I have no doubt that, when that time comes, she will have no hesitation. She will kill the thing pretending to be me. Until then, I ask to be included. If I prove untrustworthy, it is better to know this sooner than later. If, instead, I can fight this transformation, then every moment I remain myself it allows me to thwart the designs of those who seek to subvert me. I ask that you allow me that chance.”

The council seemed to be considering this when Katherine spoke up. “Thank you, Jacob. Your words are heartfelt, and none of us here doubt that you – at least at this moment – remain yourself. My question, though, was directed at Alyssa. Alyssa, your partner believes you have it within you to slay him. I ask you if this is the case.” her gaze was hard.

She took a deep breath. “Jacob speaks correctly. If he is no longer himself, then I have no qualms about ending his life.”

Katherine nodded. “There is none more qualified to do so than you. Very well, with these caveats, you have my support.”

Yael finally spoke up. “Have everyone's objections been addressed?”

Gideon, at who the question was actually directed, nodded. “I still don't think it's wise, but I have no doubt of your capabilities. Very well.”

Yael nodded again, weariness heavy upon her. “All right then, Savant, lead the way. You are dismissed.”

Savant left the room, taking his book and gesturing impatiently toward Alyssa and Jacob as he did so. Apparently Jacob knew when people were making vague gestures at him as well, as he followed without Alyssa's prompting. She left the council room last, unwilling to look back.

Savant didn't have them stop at his impromptu bookpile, instead insisting that they meet in the library. He did this insisting while filling his arms with as many books as he could carry, though, and so did not particularly bolster his case for their needing to meet in the library.

He was the only one who knew where they needed to go, though, so Jacob and Alyssa followed him without comment. Each time she went to the library, she seemed to take a different path, and she found herself wondering if the library wasn't like the Chamber as a whole, and the only reason you ever found it was that you expected it to be around the corner when you turned.

They turned the corner, the library was there. Savant put the books down on another table, a few errant ones falling to the floor unremarked. He carefully looked through the remaining pile until he found the one he'd been writing in. Pulling it out, he opened it, rifled through its pages, and stopped at a particular passage.

“I'm almost done with this.” he said absently. “I've been writing about our lost Gifted friend, Craig I think his name was. For what it's worth, I still think you're the chosen one.” he gestured to Alyssa.

Jacob laughed lightly. “See Alyssa? I told you so. Glad to see that someone with authority agrees with me.”

Alyssa frowned. “So what was all that in the council chamber about us needing to talk to this guy?”

Savant nodded as though it had been her idea. “I think it's important for you and Craig to talk. He's important in the prophecy too. He knew something, when he came through here. Something he was afraid to say, even to me, and I'm a great keeper of secrets since I'm likely to forget them.” Savant frowned, consulted his notes, then looked back up. “He kept getting quieter and quieter toward the end, almost as though he were afraid he'd accidentally say it. It sounds irrational, but whatever it was he knew, it was that important that he not reveal it.”

“So you lied to the council.” Alyssa followed up, frowning. All that arguing and bitter feelings were things they could ill-afford at this point, and Savant had stirred them up?

Savant seemed to be reading her mind again. “They wouldn't have approved if I just said I wanted you two to talk. Did you hear Gideon speak about you in the council there? He knows something is strange about you, I think they all do, but they don't want to believe it. Especially not Gideon – he's Yael's right-hand man, especially when it comes to tactical planning against the Unknown and Unknowable. The prophecy of someone who can immortalize or end the world is one that is distasteful to him. It means he doesn't matter, unless he's that one, and there's nothing he can really do about it.”

Jacob shrugged. “Sounds like a self-confidence issue. I know I matter, else I wouldn't be missing these.” he gestured to the blindfold. “As far as methods of increasing your self-esteem go, I don't recommend it. Gideon's got to learn to let go.”

“His feelings are valid, and he is unlikely to understand your perspective.” Savant noted astutely. “Thus, I had to lie, as you put it. If I can prevent our world from slipping into chaos, I'll manage to sleep at night.” he turned from them, then, and started looking over the book which had become his constant companion.

Alyssa spoke the question before prudence could make her reconsider. “What is that book?”

Savant pondered as though that were a very complex question. Finally, “It's the prophecy book. The one I found my initial prophecy in – I've been adding on to it since then. Noting things which have happened, keeping records, and writing what I think is going to happen.” he paused. “It's more than that, I know it. But I get the feeling I won't really have a good idea what it's about until it's done.”

“But you're writing it.” Jacob pointed out.

“I know! Sometimes I know what I'm going to put down – for instance, Alyssa, you'll be glad to know that I'm confessing that I lied to the council in this book. At some point I'll be giving it to them, so they'll know. Other times, especially when I'm doing prophecy, I have no idea what I'm going to put next. To be honest...” his voice lowered, as though he were afraid of being overheard, “sometimes I just write nonsense here. I kill time. When this is done, it'll change things, and I'm not sure for the better. It's like the prophecy at the very beginning, the world will be saved or damned. This book feels a lot like that.”

“Immortalized.” Jacob corrected.

Savant nodded. “Right. That's important. I don't know why.”

“Because if the chosen picked Order, nothing would ever change, and if she picked Chaos, everything would change. At least, that's my reading.”

Savant shrugged. “Sounds good to me.” he turned back to his book.

There was a distinct pause until Alyssa spoke up. “Where is this monastery?” she finally volunteered.

“Good question!” Savant glanced back up from his work. “I've never actually been there, so I can't have the door take us. Jacob's car is still broken. Alyssa, can you fly yet?”

Alyssa didn't answer the question at first, failing to see how it could be in any way serious. When he didn't look away, she finally added, “No, Savant, I can't fly.”

He nodded, as though this were regretful but expected. “Ask Yael, then. She's the one who told Craig about the alternatives to this place, presumably she knows. Failing that, Richard's still technically a Road Man, he'll have a car he'll either let you use or drive you.”

“A Road Man, let someone else drive for him?” Jacob spoke up, smiling. “I may no longer technically be able to have a driver's license, but it'll take more than that until I let someone chauffeur me around.”

“You can have my car.” Richard said. “I'm ashamed to say that, until Yael asked me to, I hadn't driven it in over a year.” he looked chagrined, partially by his admission and partially by the fact that he'd been listening in.

Jacob smiled. “You know, there's a lot I miss, but now at least nobody can sneak up on me.”

Alyssa raised an eyebrow. “Thanks for letting me know, guys, I appreciate the way I'm kept in the loop.”

Richard walked into the room, taking a seat across from Savant, who was already writing furiously in his book again. “Sorry Alyssa, I just got here, thought I'd surprise you by loaning the car. Where are you headed to?”

Jacob didn't look toward him, but the smile remained on his face. “monastery for people who decide we're not cool enough to hang around with. Know of it?”

“Beyond what Savant mentioned to us, no. If you need a ride you've got mine, but as far as directions...?” Richard shrugged. “I'm a man, I don't need to stop for directions.”

Jacob smirked. He'd once told Alyssa this was the reason the Road Men had their rather gender-specific title; there'd been female Road Men in the past, but long ago one of their order had made the same observation Richard had, and it'd stuck. Most of the time, she'd found, Jacob was all business, and people who didn't know him tended to think he, and by extension the others, had no sense of humor. It was stupid running gags like that which had made her think otherwise.

“I guess we're talking to Yael, then.” Jacob said, with a note of finality that seemed to indicate he was tired of standing around. He'd been acting so normally that she kept forgetting he'd been injured more than just physically. She couldn't decide whether his tone meant he was already tired, or that he wanted to get moving quickly so he wouldn't wear out whatever reserves of strength he had.

“Hey, Gideon knows where the place is too, if you'd rather talk to him. Because I know he's definitely more approachable.” Richard offered. The observation was greeted with silence. Richard frowned, turned to Jacob, then asked “He's not lurking around the corner like I was, is he?”

“No, he's not.” Jacob tried to keep a straight face, but was clearly finding the task difficult. “I just wanted to make you think so. Come on, time's wasting.” With that, he was out the door.

Alyssa started to follow him, but Richard took hold of her shoulder. “He's trying to be strong for you.” he said quietly. “He's always thought of himself as somewhat of a role model to you. Wanted you to not only know how to do the job, but think of aspects of it on your own. The whole door trick – most of us, we tell our partners after the first few times. It could come in handy, after all, to be able to get back here quickly. He wanted you to realize it, though. He figured if you could come to that conclusion, you might be able to figure out things that the rest of us couldn't.” he shrugged. “He's proud of you. He doesn't want you to see him weak.”

“He's not weak.” she replied, as quietly as Richard had been.

“We both know that. If he was weak, he wouldn't have survived what the Sightless did to him. He would never have woken up out of that bed. He's wounded, though. If he needs your help, help him. Otherwise, I'd let him lead the way.”

She smiled to him. “I always do.” With that final thought, she left the library to follow Jacob down the hallways.

Yael was in the lobby. In the council's chambers, she'd looked merely tired. Under the harsh florescent light Alyssa could see that the councilwoman had been nearly run ragged. She'd always had an aura of youth around her, but recent events had taken a horrible toll. Alyssa found herself wondering the last time Yael had slept.

“I have a bad feeling about this.” she was saying to Jacob. “I know I approved Savant's idea, and I still do. I just want to add my voice to those advising caution. You're wounded, Jacob, you're not as strong as you once were. Your senses have been replaced, true, but with an even more dangerous sense. You must be careful.”

“Hello Alyssa.” Jacob offered, still looking toward Yael.

“I didn't mean to interrupt.”

Yael brushed this off. “Don't worry, you haven't, I hadn't yet come to my main point.” she looked toward both of them now, apparently stopping to think of how best to phrase her speech.

“Alyssa, Jacob, I want you to be very gentle in how you speak to him. When I last saw Craig he wouldn't even speak to me. He'd lost weight, he was pale and weakening. He knew a terrible secret, he'd confided in me some time before. One he couldn't speak of to anyone. I think the very act of speaking it may have dire consequences, and this is why he feared to even open his mouth toward the end. I've told nobody of this insight, not even Savant. So yes, go see him, speak to him, but tread lightly. It would not do for him to accidentally utter a spell which slays all within hearing range, especially after having refrained from this long.”

The words sounded like nonsense, but Alyssa could tell that she was serious. Whatever Craig knew, Yael was absolutely certain that his revealing it would have dire consequences. So Alyssa simply nodded her understanding.

Yael scrutinized the two of them, then sighed. “Good luck. It's all I can offer you.” With that, she walked to the wooden lobby door and opened it for them.

When Alyssa had heard them refer to a 'monastery', she'd been envisioning a building hidden deep within a jungle, or perhaps on top of a mountain. What she hadn't expected was a small shack in the middle of a desert somewhere. Peering through the doorway, she saw no sign of life, no sign other than the shack itself that anyone had been there to begin with.

Jacob frowned. “That's the place, but something's not right about it.”

“It is not too late.” Yael said then. “You do not need to proceed immediately, or even at all. If you wish to stay here and help us plan the recuperation, we would value your counsel.”

When she'd seen Yael whispering cautions to Jacob, Alyssa had initially thought the woman was simply looking out for his well-being. She was slowly coming to realize that, her words as leader of the Council notwithstanding, she was becoming more and more opposed to the journey. However, if even such a stalwart opponent of splitting their forces as Katherine had endorsed the idea, it was likely to be done.

Jacob shook his head. “I appreciate your worry.” as usual, he'd seen directly to the heart of the matter and eschewed tact in doing so. “But this is something that has to be done.”

Saying no more, he walked calmly through the door. Alyssa followed.

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