Page 119 of Keeper of the Word

Goodsell doubted entrusting their exit to Hux, but Tara had placed her hand upon his to still his suspicions.

Donning their cloaks, Elanna and Tara followed the others out into the corridor. At times, Hux split them into two groups, ducking into empty rooms or behind curtains. Twice, Hux sought out a servant, whispering in his ear as the others observed the servant’s eyes widen before escorting the group to another section of the castle. At the servant’s gate, the same one they’d used the day of the Mead Moon Festival, Hux gave the two guards there a few choice phrases as well. Elanna only caught the words “commander’s daughter” and “your honor.” They stepped aside, Goodsell’s surprise audible. Hux certainly was putting the castle gossip to use. More surprising, though, was when the guards handed Hux two swords.

“There isn’t one for everyone,” Joss said.

“It’ll do,” Hux said, wrapping the sheath belt around his waist after offering the other one to Goodsell. “Besides, I thought this city was safe?”

Joss kept her cursing to a minimum, and they exited.

Once they were on the street and two blocks away from Castle Sidra, the group relaxed a bit and splintered into pairs. Elanna walked side by side with Hux at the lead. The air, cool and fresh from the rain, felt glorious outside the sovereign’s castle. The night was early, and they strode past numerous passersby, who ignored them with ease, as they meandered the boroughs of the city.

A few clouds lingered in the sky, but otherwise, a speckle of stars was visible overhead. The half-moon was partially covered by a cloudy drift, but its light illuminated them as if a lantern lay behind. The streets sheened with puddles that reflected the light of the street lanterns and torches from pubs, taverns, and late-open shoppes.

“What is Shroud Magic, Lady?” Hux kept his voice low. “Explain to me what we’re doing? From your retelling of the witch in the square, I would ne’er have thought you’d actively seek her out.”

Elanna kept her eyes on the road in front of them; the puddles on the cobblestone rippled as they were disturbed. “We need her. Shroud Magic is dark spellwork.”

“Like the Curse of?—”

Elanna paused and put her hand to Hux’s mouth. The others halted behind them, Goodsell particularly jumpy.

“Nay.” She pierced Hux’s eyes with her own. “Not like the Curse at all. The Curse is an evil not of the skies.”

“What happened?” Joss called, but neither responded.

They resumed walking in silence.

“Darkness need not be gloom,” she continued after her heart had slowed. “There is beauty and a depth therein that we oft mistake for wrongness. The wrongness is not the dark but the desires of imbalance. Greed. Hatred. Corruption. But the beauty of light cannot shine without darkness.”

Hux’s lips quirked into a half-smile. “That sounds”—he paused—“comforting.”

Elanna shrugged, blocking what she’d Seen of Hux’s future from her mind. “’Tis the way of things. Can you view the stars when they are obstructed by the sun?”

Hux grinned. “You can view the moon at times.”

Elanna nodded. “Aye, my point exactly. The moon is a gentle intermediary between them. It has a glow and a shade. ’Tis one reason the half-moon is vital for tonight.”

“I see.”

The conversation lulled, and Elanna found her eyes drawn to the black shadows of alleyways and unlit windows.

“Indeed, there was a time,” she said, “when even witches dreaded the Curse. ’Tis because the Curse cannot be controlled, no matter what humankind may think. So you see, dark spellwork is not a curse but is a magic contrary to the light of Siria. ’Tis much like the difference between the shadows scattered by the moon’s pale light and the glimmer of the stars. ’Tis as coldness and warmth.”

Laughter in an alleyway seized their attention.

“I have ne’er heard of Shroud Magic. Shouldn’t I be familiar with it as I am from Deogol, the isle of the Moons?”

“The Moon goddesses are the very essence of the Moon’s muted glow. They are not the shadows.”

Hux frowned, clearly not following all of Elanna’s words.

“’Tis layered, the enchantments of this world. There is the constancy of the stars’ brilliance, the everchanging radiance of the Moon, and the rich cast of shades as the antithesis of that luminosity. It keeps the balance in Tasia. But where StarSeers are Daughters of Light, Shroud Magic is not easily used. Or touched. And there can be harsh consequences that I am not altogether familiar with. But we have no choice.”

Hux cocked his head toward her and raised an eyebrow. “And this is why we seek the witch. You need her to perform this?”

“Aye. And Tolvar’s moonstone. Let us hope she is who Tara has Seen.”

They rounded the block and found themselves in a new borough. And Hux was right. This district did feel different. Not lavish. Many of the signs on shoppes and pubs bore chipped paint, and the street lanterns revealed cobwebs thereon. Dozens of people still passed them, but fleeting eyes drifted onto them. Hux kept his hand on his hilt. When she glanced back at Goodsell, he, too, had a hand on his hilt.