Page 15 of Death’s Kiss (The Order of the Tide Raiders #1)
Preceptor Ersatz has us working on adaptability with our affinities and has created her own demonic version of an obstacle course. We’re to complete each section by using our affinity alone. No outside help, weapons, or partners allowed.
In Theory of War, we’ve moved onto the next form of psychological warfare: propaganda. Which simultaneously ties in with Preceptor Chie’s current lecture series .
I’m surprised to find the South Order Regent now sits-in on Beldham’s class. The pale slip of a man perches just behind my crew’s new table and sets my teeth on edge with his presence. It appears to annoy our own regent just as much as it does the rest of the northern raiders.
When I return at long last to weapons training, I’m immediately pulled by Oplon. My mouth opens in affront. I’m ready to argue, both angered and surprised he wouldn’t allow me to return to train, but he silences me with the raise of his hand.
“You’re needed elsewhere at the moment I’m afraid, Captain Boreas. It seems the other Grand Preceptors already let their captains know when and where to meet. However, Raider Dornon here will escort you and Captain Larceon,” he explains.
“For what?” I ask, glancing at Vash standing at the chamber's entrance, chatting with our strawberry-blonde officiant.
“The affinity measuring. It’s standard procedure. Shouldn't take but an hour or so.” At the look of worry that crosses my features, Oplon leans over his stingray cane, saying quietly, “I’ll keep the training chambers open late. Should you care to practice afterwards.”
I give him a small smile in thanks and he motions for me to get going.
Affinity measuring is held in the same hall as our first meeting regarding the Pillar Trials.
Vash and Raider Dornon chat the whole way there, apparently they originate from islands not far from each other.
I let them prattle on about things familiar to them and focus on my breathing.
My fingers tap together rhythmically in order to ease the incessant anxiety.
Upon entering, I discover a new face among the other raider captains gathered.
Or perhaps an old face is the proper term, as the stranger's skin is weathered and his hair little more than tufts of white.
The uniform he wears is a deep ocean green ombre beginning at the ends of his robes that lightens all the way to a cream color along his shoulders.
A sash of conjoined shells, crab claws, and various sea creature bones surrounds his waist. Threaded seaweed ties in a band around his head, covering the holes where his eyes should be.
As a member of the ‘The Sons and Daughters,’ he forfeited those orbs long ago in exchange for what they call ‘true sight’.
I try my best not to stare at the chain of razor-sharp teeth encircling his neck. They appear to belong mainly to various breeds of sharks but a few of them are so large they must have come from a more fantastical creature of The Deep.
Since my own Sál Moon ceremony, I haven’t seen another member of the Sons and Daughters.
The Hiereus’s unexpected presence does little to quail the nerves prickling their way up and down my limbs, demanding I run as far from this room as possible.
Vash has become quiet and the other captains eye the ocean-worshiping cult leader uneasily.
The ancient hiereus chortles beneath his seaweed veil and I give us all a little credit for not flinching at the unearthly sound.
Raider Dornon clears his throat, announcing Hiereus Philistos will perform the assessments one by one.
We are then instructed to remove the clothing needed in order to expose the markings of our affinities.
“I’d prefer he bought me dinner first,” mutters Brisa Bedivere, one of the western captains, from my right.
I actually snort a laugh at the unexpected comment and we share a brief glance of amusement while the others begin shimmying out of their uniforms. Her steel-colored eyes, the same shade as the charms in the dark braids of her hair, assess me with less edge.
United in fear, it seems, if only for a few moments .
I unbutton my uniform jacket and quickly remove both it and the thin navy shirt beneath.
A moment later, I catch amber eyes staring at the bandages wrapped tightly around my breasts.
The scent of menthol and eucalyptus on them is fresh, Davina having replaced them for me this morning in an effort to steer clear of the sick bay and Leech Vitasan’s wrath.
I give Agni a cold glare, to which he answers with a sneer, before beginning to undress himself.
Averting my gaze, I try ignoring the constant feeling that I should thank him somehow.
Regardless of his name-calling and constant vexing, he did rather unfortunately save my life.
Whatever honor I do in fact have demands that it can’t go unnoticed.
Hiereus Philistos begins his assessment with the Cardinal East. And Reed Namak, the male captain who Herse reported has some ability with minerals, goes first. He’s now shirtless like myself and several others while turning to expose the seven intricate, circular markings equally space along his spine.
The unsettling old man places his gnarled hands atop the marks, proceeding to rub his palms up and down Captain Namak’s back.
He hums to himself almost the entire time, sometimes stopping to mutter “ good ” or " yes, yes, just as I thought ” before resuming his assessment.
Once finished, he clicks his tongue and motions for Reed to step back so the next captain may take his place.
Dhara Ghosh, the female eastern captain, steps before Hiereus Philistos and extends both arms to him. She’s lucky enough to have the thick black bands marking her affinity wind up from her wrists to the edges of her toned biceps in even one-inch spacing. They’re simple yet exact.
The room is quiet as he taps his fingers along each black band and I watch Captain Ghosh’s unreadable face as he does so. “Sharp, sharp,” Hiereus Philistos mutters to no one in particular. “Mmhmm.” He tuts to himself, barking out, “Go on, swim along now!”
Dhara flinches out of his grasp and moves back to stand in the shadow of her boyfriend .
Ansil Tetsuo of the west goes next, revealing the palms of his hands and soles of his feet. The affinity markings he’s been gifted portray deep charcoal rings encircling each other, growing larger and larger as they extend outward.
I hear Vash stifle a laugh from beside me as the old man has Captain Tetsuo sit on the floor so he can cup the soles of his feet. The western captain throws Vash a dark look that has me wrangling my own lips together in a tight line.
“Push and pull, push and pull, so do the tides go,” Hiereus Philistos sings to himself while Vash and I exchange mixed looks of amusement and unease.
When he’s finished with Captain Tetsuo, Philistos moves onto Brisa and actually cackles when first touching the dark blue radiating lines along her shoulders. “On the shoulders, oh, of course. ” He laughs again and this time it verges on insanity.
Brisa looks pointedly over at Ansil, who gives her a wide-eyed shrug in response. Her judgment ends with Philistos lightly patting her markings before stating, “I get the joke,” in dismissal.
Corvina looks a bit worse for wear when stepping before the old man.
From the circles beneath her eyes, it doesn’t appear that she’s had much sleep.
I watch her through a frigid glare. It’s up to the southern Grand Preceptor how she’s punished but I'd like to know exactly what’s been asked of her.
It had better be worse than Herse swimming across the bay every night.
A punishment that has thankfully ended since my awakening.
The midnight blue symbols of her affinity begin just at the hollow of her throat and are undeniably some of the most beautiful markings I’ve ever seen. They swirl in thin curving lines that sprawl down to bloom like saltwater flowers along the breadth of her chest.
The hiereus uses two wrinkled fingers to jab along the floral design, as if taking her pulse. “What a pity,” Philistos laments after a moment, and Corvina’s emerald eyes flash in warning. “Only one half.” He heaves a disappointed sigh. "Well, dear, just give it more time. ”
I can't help but smirk at the utter indignation coloring Captain Leporem’s face. She wastes no time in storming away from the elderly cult-leader and yanking on the scarlet jacket of her uniform.
Next comes Olsson Agni and it would be a lie to say I wasn’t more than a little interested in his affinity mark. Other than Kerau, he's the only elemental I’ve ever come into contact with.
Being that the southern captain is so tall, Agni opts to sit backwards in one of the chairs lining the center table so Hiereus Philistos can reach him.
I work on controlling my curiosity as he reveals the sprawling affinity mark covering the entirety of his backside.
In the center of his spine lies a perfect circle of obsidian and an intricate diamond pattern forming what appears to be rays of the sun spreads outward.
From there, a design portraying wisps of smoke swirl and curl all the way over his shoulders to twist around his biceps.
His markings are unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. The longer I study them, the more nuanced shapes I find. From the looks being thrown around the room, I know I’m not alone in my newfound dismay—or jealousy.
Hiereus Philistos places both palms on either side of Captain Agni’s back. “Oh, I see, ” he mutters, swiftly dropping his hands to pick up the end of his weird shell-and-skeleton sash. I watch in disgust as he lifts one end of the belt to his mouth and begins sucking on a crab claw.
The southerner throws a dark scowl over his shoulder, aimed for the hiereus.
One aged hand belonging to Philistos tentatively begins touching the muscles along Agni's shoulders, like the markings might burn him.
“How… unusual, ” he murmurs around the claw hanging from the corner of his mouth, running a crooked finger up Agni's spine.
The old man begins rubbing something invisible between his thumb and middle finger, mumbling, “As above, so beneath. Hm ."
Captain Larceon volunteers to go next and stands almost awkwardly motionless while he holds either side of his rib cage.
As I’ve known Vash now for almost eight years, I'm already aware what his affinity mark emerges as.
A labyrinth of lines and symbols scales either side of his ribs but never quite connects one to the other.
“Such murky depths,” the hiereus muses, shaking his seaweed-veiled head. “Which path, which path indeed,” he remarks, ending Captain Larceon’s evaluation quicker than the others.
I take a quick breath before trading Vash places.
The others have begun dressing and now talk quietly with one another so I don’t feel quite as anxious coming to stand before the hiereus. He motions for me to turn around and I do so. Although I am a bit puzzled by how he already knows where my affinity mark lies without eyes to actually see it.
“Does she even have one?” Corvina whispers snidely to Olsson. He snorts faintly in response before resuming to watch my assessment in a state of passive calculation.
I keep my mouth shut from the smart-ass remark I’m tempted to make as my gaze finds Corvina’s.
I give her a freezing stare, one that I hope she feels inside her bones.
Her jaded eyes glimmer while giving me a saccharine smile in turn.
Yet I note the way her jaw sets, and I track the thick swallow she aims to hide.
She knows this dance is unfinished and I have plenty of time to retaliate.
My smile is faint when releasing her gaze and returning my attention to the old man.
He's current observing the unusual white marking gracing the expanse of my back. His gnarled fingers lightly trace the wild and unruly patterns bursting across my shoulder blades and streaming down to the base of my spine. It’s silent for a moment.
“This won't do,” he tuts.
The sound of something snapping echoes from behind. I look back in time to see he’s yanked one of the large, razor-sharp teeth from around his neck. I’m too surprised to even think about stopping him before Philistos has swiped the edge of that massive tooth across the skin of my exposed flesh.
I bark out a curse and hear Vash suck in a sharp breath as the room grows several degrees warmer. A thin line of crimson appears beneath the cut. And quicker than should be possible, the hiereus runs his finger over my fresh wound before touching it to the tip of his tongue.
I freeze.
I'm so stunned by the bizarre sight that I can’t form a coherent sentence in my own mind beyond the words what the fuck. Which I replay over and over and over again. I’m positive this image will star in many nightmares to come.
Hiereus Philistos clicks his tongue against the roof of his mouth. Twice. And a deep frown etches into his ancient face when shouting shrilly, “ Fine . Keep your secrets then!”