“Except where the desert ends and the mountains begin.” This came from a Speaker who had not joined the debate so far. “There are several landwalker settlements along the coast.”

The Speakers fell silent. Their gazes dropped to the floor. Auraya felt a pang of sympathy as she sensed them struggling with their fears.

“Good people of Si,” she said quietly. “I wish that you were not facing such hard times and such difficult choices. I cannot make these decisions for you. I cannot tell you who to trust. I would never dream of forcing you to choose one way or another. I believe that when the gods asked me and my fellow White to seek allies throughout Ithania they simply wished to see us all united in peace. Perhaps they foresaw some future conflict. I don’t know. I do know that we would be honored to have the people of Si standing beside us, in times of conflict or peace.”

She rose, nodded once, then left. As she walked from the bower she heard muffled voices. She could not distinguish the words, but her Gifts told her what was said.

“We are caught up in this—whatever it is—whether we like it or not. I say we choose a side, because on our own we are sure to perish.”

There was a pause, then: “If we must choose who to trust, then will it be the one who came in secret, bringing dangerous birds, or the one who waited to be invited?”

And finally: “Huan made us. Do these Pentadrians worship Huan? No. I choose the White.”

25

In the shadows around Leiard and Jayim only the faint shapes of trees and plants could be made out. They might have been in the middle of a forest. It was the lack of familiar noises that ruined the illusion, telling Leiard plainly that they were on the roof of the Bakers’ house.

I miss the forest, he realized suddenly. I miss being calm. Being undisturbed in heart and mind. Safe.

Then go back, fool.

Leiard ignored the tart words in his mind. This voice in my head is merely an echo of a long-dead sorcerer, he reminded himself. If I ignore him, he’ll go away. He looked at Jayim. The boy was waiting patiently, used to Leiard’s long pauses.

“Magic can be used for healing in many ways,” Leiard said. “The Gifts that I will teach you are divided into three levels of difficulty. The first level involves simple actions: the pinching of a blood tube to stop bleeding; cauterization; the realignment of broken bones. The second involves more complex interventions: encouraging or discouraging blood flow; stimulation and guidance of the body’s healing processes; blocking pain.