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  Patrice gave a shrug, which looked awkward since she was reclined and leaning on one elbow. “When it comes down to actually confronting your own afterlife, the way Honor says Larisa can just go there, then yes. I believe everyone from Earth is a skeptic to some degree. People are always spouting this and that about whatever heaven or hell they might believe in, but no one I know would admit a human could just visit any time they liked. And they certainly wouldn’t go on about being able to do it themselves, unless they wanted to be locked up.”

  This sounded barbaric to Larisa. “You mean people on your world get sequestered for believing in such things?”

  “Sometimes. That or they’re shunned for being freaks.”

  Magic made it possible for the Earth woman to communicate with Larisa and the others, as Sorinieve had explained when Patrice first arrived, but there were still times when a word did not have an equal on Selenea. Freaks was just such a word but Larisa got the gist of it. “That is terrible.”

  “You mean you don’t have crazy people on Selenea?”

  “Well yes, of course.”

  “And do others welcome them? Or do they shun them?”

  Larisa nodded. “I get your point. People fear what they do not understand.”

  “Right. And people fear they could end up like those they call crazy. Those who’ve lost touch with reality.” Patrice yawned. “Am I right?”

  “Yes. I guess there are more similarities to our worlds than differences.”

  Patrice chuckled. “Don’t count on it. This entire world is nuts in my opinion.”

  “Go to sleep, you two.” Kepriah had her eyes closed. “I’m tired.”

  Larisa lay back on her pallet, thinking about what Honor had told her about the Hollow of the Dead. Her sisters drifted off to sleep soon after, Kepriah snoring softly. She was just about to close her eyes when a dark figure appeared in the doorway. She tried to make out the person but all she could see was a shadow-like figure. Human, yes, but no details. She could not tell whether the figure was male or female.

  “You will not remember me,” a hushed voice said, and Larisa fell asleep.

  Chapter 13

  The next morning came too quickly, and Larisa stayed in her blankets as the sun streamed in from the doorway. An odd dream had lodged itself in her memory but she could not bring it to the surface. Murmurs and movements from outside kept her from closing her eyes again, and she yawned as she rolled over to look at the clock. Just after nine. Her sisters were stirring from sleep and Kepriah looked even more tired than Larisa felt.

  Patrice groaned. “I could sleep another two hours at least. Why do they have to be so damn noisy?”

  Larisa scooted to Patrice and slapped her scratching fingers from the bandage so she could inspect her arm. The rash was already beginning to fade. “Another three or four days and you will be good as new.” Both her sisters’ weariness pressed on her senses. “I’m tired this morning, too.” She went back to her pallet to lie down.

  Kepriah huffed. “I do not know why you two are complaining. I’m the one who opened all those bloody archways to get us here.”

  “Good morning, Nobles.” Jakon stood in the doorway as a dark silhouette.

  Something in Larisa’s subconscious tried to come to the forefront as she looked at the silhouetted man but it left just as quickly as it started.

  “Speak for yourself, Jakon,” Kepriah said. “Tell them to shut the hell up out there so we can get a few more winks, will you?” She fell back onto her pallet and pulled the blanket over her head.

  “What she said.” Patrice laid her head on her pillow and closed her eyes.

  Jakon made his way into the room. He looked rested and Larisa felt jealousy at that. She let out a vicious yawn just before she saw something in Jakon’s eyes. “What is wrong?” She pulled to a sitting position and rolled her head around to relieve the stiffness.

  “You did sleep, Nobles?”

  “Yes,” they answered in unison.

  “All night?”

  Again, they gave an affirmative answer together

  “But you are exhausted?”

  Larisa and Patrice looked at one another. “Duh,” Patrice said. “What gave you that idea, genius?”

  Jakon frowned and called over his shoulder for someone to fetch Honor.

  “Spill, Jakon,” Kepriah said. She was now sitting with her legs crossed, hands on her knees, and looking more alert than Larisa thought possible, given the fatigue coming from her.

  “Not until Honor tests you.”

  Before they could ask more of him, he stepped out. The three of them scrambled into their clothes, not saying much at all, and were dressed when Jakon returned. His grandmother was with him and so was Healer. Like yesterday, both women had their hair wrapped around their heads. Honor wore the blue tear-shaped gem that dangled over the middle of her forehead. Honor said nothing as she walked to Kepriah, took her chin, and gazed into her eyes. She did the same with Larisa and finally Patrice. Healer followed and repeated the gestures. The two desert women conferred with one another for a moment.

  Honor crossed her arms as she turned to Jakon. “It is as you feared.”

  “All right,” Kepriah shot. “What in hell and Hollow is going on?”

  Jakon’s grandmother faced her. “You have been tampered with. What do you remember about last night? Dreams, shadows, anything?”

  “I had a dream,” Patrice said. As Honor’s golden eyes narrowed on her, she screwed her face in thought. “Can’t remember a damn thing about it, though. But I’m positive it was bizarre.”

  “Me too,” Larisa said. “I cannot remember my dreams but I know I had some strange ones.”

  “Kepriah?” Honor moved toward the warrior woman.

  “I might have dreamed. I do not recall. I think someone was here after we went to bed. A man. Or maybe a woman. I believe I saw a shadow but, jabber shit, I’m not certain.” She frowned.

  Larisa’s heart hammered in her chest. “You saw it, too? I thought I saw a shadow right before I went to sleep. I did not remember until you said something.”

  Worry etched Jakon’s face now and he stepped to his grandmother. “Nyanan?”

  The white-haired woman took in a long breath then nodded. “Who else? She must have seen them in her visions. Followed you here.”

  “If she knows they are here, she can invade their thoughts any time.”

  “Whoa! Who the hell is Nyanan?” Patrice so eloquently said. She was beginning to sound more like Kepriah every day. She had also picked up a few of the warrior’s swear words, curses unique to Selenea, and seemed determined to add them to her vocabulary.

  Honor took in a deep breath and frowned. “Nyanan—or rather, generations of women with that name—has special mind-altering abilities. She can change memories, plant thoughts, even coax information from an unwilling subject. Her victims cannot remember who she is or what she looks like. There is only one Nyanan born every few hundred years and she is highly elusive. Cannot be captured by royals, either, since they do not remember she exists.”

  Patrice snorted. “How do you two know about her, then?”

  Larisa studied her younger sister. That is a very good question.

  “Because,” Jakon said. “We have never met her.”

  “What? That makes no—wait. Okay, I get it. You never met her so she couldn’t take that knowledge from you.”

  “Exactly, First. Nyanan is mentioned in the ancient texts, knowledge that is protected by our elders. Sorinieve saw her in a vision after you three were born but she never saw her face. She warned me that once you got your powers, Nyanan might come after you, and she told me what to look for in you should it happen. We searched for several years but were unable to locate her. Honor, too, has seen Nyanan in visions.”

  Honor gave her grandson a thoughtful gaze. “The woman has the power to keep herself hidden in the shadows of our minds, as well as in the real world.”

  Jakon nodded. “She stays a
way from those who are more experienced, like Sorinieve was. She knew she could not take Sorinieve’s memories so she stayed away from us.

  Honor’s gaze moved between Larisa and her sisters. “She cannot take the memories completely from those who are stronger, like you three, which is why you remember seeing a person. But she is much more experienced, so she is able to keep her face hidden from you.”

  Patrice sniffed. “How does anyone know about her if no one remembers her?”

  This time Jakon spoke in his familiar teaching voice. “The ancient prophecies tell of her. There was a time when magic was strong on this world, remember? When Nyanan had equals who were just as strong in magic as she.”

  “And that’s how you know so much about her.” Larisa said. A brief thought of Nyanan removing memories of the deadly flood crossed her mind. She did not want to forget her parents and friends, just the pain of losing them. Perhaps this Nyanan could take those disturbing memories away. Her sisters studied her and she pulled her attention from those thoughts.

  Jakon’s voice helped. “Yes, Second, and from oral stories passed down through the generations. Prophecies state that there will come a day when a Nyanan searches for power to control her own destiny, rather than to assist others as the Moirai intended. There have been many Nyanans born and gone to the Hollow, but if one gains enough power to control destiny, she may be able to cheat death for eternity. No one has seen or heard from her in a very long time.”

  Kepriah leaned against the wall with her legs extended, left ankle over right, arms crossed. “So, no one could point her out even if they saw her. What about your visions, Honor?”

  Honor gave her a level gaze. “They are not clear. Like Sorinieve, I never see her face, only her actions. Nyanan lives a very long life thanks to the Moirai. This one has been alive for centuries and her magic is strong. You would do well not to underestimate her.”

  Two women and a girl carrying food interrupted them. Honor and Jakon sat on the floor at the low table. Larisa and her sisters joined them at the elder’s beckon. Even with the help of Kepriah’s archways, Larisa’s legs felt sore from the walking they had done yesterday, and she stretched them out beneath the table.

  Kepriah crossed her legs and lowered herself to the floor as though it took no effort at all. “If Nyanan was here last night, does that mean she is nearby?”

  Jakon shook his head. “She can travel great distances within another’s mind. She could be anyone, from any place. She can coerce a weaker person to do her bidding, while she remains at a safe location. Even if she were here, none of us would remember seeing her, except you three, and even you cannot remember more than shadows.”

  “So she could be using one of your people to get to us?”

  “I am afraid so, First. I had hoped by coming here, we would avoid Nyanan’s reach. It seems I was wrong.”

  “You have done well, Grandson. Bringing them here was the safest plan until they are stronger in their magic.”

  “Thank you, Grandmother.”

  Patrice flopped down next to Larisa. “We’re more powerful than Sorinieve.” She scooted close to fill her plate. “At least that’s what you keep telling us, Jakon. So, why don’t we remember whatever face this Nyanan is using?”

  Patrice seemed to flip and flop between denying that magic existed and acceptance of her new title, something that was beginning to annoy Larisa. And Kepriah, from what she could feel from the warrior woman.

  “You are vulnerable until you master the Faytools,” Honor said. “Which she is counting on.”

  Jakon turned to his grandmother. “They cannot defend themselves against Nyanan. Not yet.”

  “They must practice quickly then, Grandson.”

  “I understand.” He glanced at Kepriah and back to his grandmother. “How long can we stay?”

  A brief look of what Larisa thought might be annoyance crossed Honor’s face but it was gone in an instant. “Eleven days at most.”

  Patrice lowered the flatbread she was about to stick in her mouth. “Eleven days? We can’t possibly learn everything in eleven days!” Larisa braced her mind against her sister’s panic but it did little good.

  “That is all the time you have before you are in real danger. Nyanan cannot gain full control of you until after the thirteenth night.”

  Larisa drew her gaze from Patrice. “Why?”

  Jakon answered this time. “It takes thirteen nights for her to win over her victims completely. The ancient scrolls are specific about this.”

  Honor studied him a moment. “My grandson is correct. Nyanan must perform the nightly rituals in order to take full control of a victim. Once the thirteenth night is complete, she can be with you for any length of time, make you do things for her, and still clear your memory of her visits. After that, she can begin rituals to steal your powers. She has already put some tiny thought into your heads. Some small order that she will check to see if you have followed when she returns. This is the first ritual, according to the ancient scrolls.”

  Panic swelled from Larisa’s sisters and she swallowed back her own fear. “Like what?”

  “A simple thing, such as picking a flower and placing it someplace, or moving a small object to a specified location. Something insignificant that no one would suspect, even you.”

  Larisa fought a shiver. “But she would recognize it.”

  “Exactly.”

  Kepriah grunted and uttered something that was probably a curse. “If she plans to come back, is there some way we can trap her?”

  Honor gave her a pitying look. “Child, do you really think a woman as powerful as Nyanan would allow anyone to capture her? She can only be captured in her own flesh, not while using another’s body, and she is too clever for that.”

  Patrice eyed Kepriah then Honor. “What if we split up? Sleep in different rooms? Have you and Healer watch over us?”

  Honor cocked her head and the blue teardrop over her forehead dangled to one side. She gave Patrice a measured look. “What you suggest would only serve to anger one of the most elusive and powerful beings on Selenea. You do not want to do that without having full possession of your powers. Do you, Third?”

  Patrice studied the desert woman a moment then shook her head. “No.” Her dread jabbed at Larisa’s senses. “Not if what you say is true.”

  Patrice believed it was true. At least, that’s what Larisa felt from her sister. And it left the Earth woman terrified. Kepriah’s eyes settled on Patrice but she said nothing. Jakon sat chewing on flatbread as his gaze moved between them, and Larisa wished she could sense what he was feeling right now. Everyone except Honor appeared shaken. The desert woman seemed so calm about the whole Nyanan thing, despite her warnings. Elders tended to do that, exude patience when everyone else was in a panic.

  “We must not make her suspicious. You three will continue your lessons here until the day before Nyanan gains full control, then you will leave when the sun is up. Nyanan is a creature of darkness, who can only possess a mind once it is asleep, so she will not learn of your disappearance until after nightfall. By then, Kepriah will have you a good distance away from here.” Honor spread a piece of flatbread with sweetened fruit pulp, rolled it and stood. “I suggest you practice as though your lives depend on it, because they very well might. I will keep watch over you and instruct you as best I can. I will also see that the west clearing is kept vacant for you.” She left with Jakon on her heels.

  Patrice let out a noisy breath. “Just when I was beginning to like this place.”

  Kepriah got up. “Once we get control of our powers, I will personally throttle this Nyanan woman.” She kicked her blankets into a pile on her pallet.

  Larisa fought down fear that settled in her gut. “Let us hope so.”

  ****

  Larisa and her sisters spent their days practicing magic and nights forgetting visits from Nyanan. They could not remember anything about her. Not her height, hair color or what she wore, not even a mole. They ea
ch brought little objects into their room and placed them near their belongings, just as Honor had predicted, and the only evidence that someone manipulated them. That and the constant fatigue that plagued them. Honor slept in their room to try and catch a glimpse of the woman, without success. She claimed she remembered seeing someone but details fled her memory.

  Larisa usually gathered some flower or herb, not unusual since she had done that from childhood. She was an herbmistress’ daughter after all. For Patrice, it was a rock, sometimes shimmering and other times as plain as dirt, much the way she had collected in her childhood. Each day, they made use of the items, as though they collected them on purpose and not at the whim of a woman with dark magic. If they hadn’t known about Nyanan, no one would have questioned the trinkets. For Kepriah, it was less obvious to Larisa and the rest. The warrior folded her blankets each morning and placed them neatly on her pallet, even Kepriah had not noticed she was doing it until Patrice pointed it out.

  Each day, Larisa and her sisters performed every lesson and task set upon them by Jakon and Honor until they were exhausted. The elder took a great interest in their training and often grilled them on exactly what they were thinking and feeling during certain exercises, especially successful ones. She also seemed to know many things that surprised even Jakon, especially about the Faytools. He seemed a bit perturbed by that lack of knowledge, and Larisa watched as he confronted his grandmother when they broke fast their final day among the desert dwellers.

  They ate out in the open, at one of the stone tables supported by large rocks and close to the ground. When not in use, the tables blended in with the landscape. All of Jakon’s people were present, some eating in leisure, some serving while they munched. Guards and warriors, their braided hair shiny with some type of oil, scooped tidbits from tables as they passed, since they were not allowed to sit while on watch.

  “You really should have taught me these things, Grandmother.” Anger touched Jakon’s usually patient voice.