Chapter 61 - Wayfinder

I arrive back at the southern gate to a scene of organised chaos. Arrian’s soldiers, more than a dozen strong, move with a disciplined efficiency that makes our own town guard look like a loosely gathered militia.

Clovis spots me as I navigate through a group of guards checking their quivers.

She gestures me over, the dark circles under her eyes seem to have taken up permanent residence as she has to contend with the limited rest from the night just gone by. 

“It’s done. I showed how it worked to him with much difficult.” She says with a slight, almost imperceptible roll of her eyes.

“He’s happy with it?” I whisper back to her. 

“I think he is. I had to give him a full demonstration. He was skeptical, of course, but even that arrogance of his couldn’t argue with the proof right in front of him. He’s agreed to allow us to navigate the expedition based on what we can see.” She confirms back to me. 

“That responsibility is going to have to be yours, Shikara. My magic is needed for healing and support. Do you think you can handle that?” She gives me my final ultimatum, my final chance to back out.

A jolt of pure, undiluted pressure shoots through me. 

Just a few weeks ago, I couldn’t guide myself off a train platform. 

I couldn’t even guide myself away from the cold temptation of a razor’s edge. 

And now my responsibility holds the lives of brave men and women in the balance.

“I can do it!” I say, straightening my shoulders, trying to project a confidence I don’t fully possess. 

“Wonderful, I’m so happy to have you there with me! And speaking of support, Arrian is only bringing along one other mage. He’s keeping the rest here to protect the village while we’re gone. Just in case.” She looks over my head searching for him. 

“Over there.” She points towards a man standing slightly apart from the main group of soldiers, near a cart laden with supplies. “Let me introduce you.”

She leads me over by my arm like a mum trying two children to be friends. 

The man is older than I expected, with silver threaded through the dark hair at his temples and a face etched with the fine lines of someone who spends more time reading than fighting. 

He’s not wearing any armour like the others, his clothes not too different from my own just for a man instead. His posture is slightly hung but there’s a quiet, scholarly stillness about him that sets him apart from the tense, coiled energy of the soldiers.

He leans on his tip toes as we approach, and his eyes offer a polite smile as they crinkle in the corners. “You’re Shikara, I presume? It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. My name is Aniro.” There is a rich mellow flavour to his voice that soothes my ears.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.” I fire a warm welcome of my own back at him in hopes his easy-going formality isn’t just an act.

“Clovis was just telling me about your work with the lens. It’s a truly fascinating discovery.” There’s a profound respect for boundaries in his demeanour, he’s definitely not cut from the same cloth as Arrian.

“When we return from the expedition, you and any of the other kingdom mages are welcome to view it for yourselves. We’ll have more time to discuss the research properly then.” Clovis stops his advances before he continues as she can see where this is heading. 

The offer is a professional courtesy, but he accepts it with the grace of a true scholar. “That is an incredibly generous offer, Clovis. I would be honoured to take you up on it.” He gives a slight, respectful bow of his head.

“Enough chatter. It’s time to move.” Knight Captain Arrian stands a few feet away, hand raised high above his head. 

Aniro’s pleasant demeanour evaporates, replaced by the rigid posture of a subordinate. He gives us a final, apologetic nod before moving to take his place in the formation. 

Clovis just lets out a quiet, exasperated sigh.

The order to depart ripples through the ranks, and the column of soldiers begins to move, their armoured boots crunching on the gravel path. 

I take my place near the front with Clovis and Arrian, the lens held tightly in my hands, despite my injury it’s not heavy enough to cause any discomfort. 

We pass the last fortification outside the southern gate and step into the shadow of the forest.

The moment we cross the threshold, I raise the lens.

The world fractures.

The familiar greens and browns of the woods are still there, but they are now just a backdrop for a new overwhelming spectacle. 

The single, structured vein of magic I saw with Clovis is gone. Here, at the forest’s edge, it’s a tangled, chaotic cosmos.

Thousands of mana streams, a cacophony of light and colour, writhe and pulse around within the circumference of the lens. 

Shimmering golds, deep emeralds, and soft azures flow in every conceivable direction, weaving through the trees, sinking into the earth, and rising towards the canopy. 

It picks at the memory of my time before I was placed down here, being torn away piece by piece by chromatic aberrations. The sheer volume of visual information was staggering then and it’s staggering now.

There is no clear path. No single, dominant current to follow. They flow almost equally in every direction, a bewildering web of pure energy. 

How am I supposed to navigate this? How can I possibly choose a path when every direction looks the same?

I stumble briefly as my focus wavers. Arrian shoots me a sharp, questioning glare that I try to ignore. But it’s not helping me concentrate, to find some pattern in the chaos, some sign to guide us.

My eyes scan the writhing mass of light, desperately searching for something, anything, that stands out.

Amidst the thousands of shimmering threads, one stream seems… thicker. It’s not a dramatic difference, but it’s there. 

It’s a guess but guesses have brought us this far. 

Taking a deep, shaky breath, I point the lens, and my voice, towards the path it illuminates. “This way.”