Fulcrum of Light (Catalyst Book 2) C.J. Aaron (unputdownable books .TXT) 📖

Of the remaining ten phrenics of Vim, only four resided on the level below. Kaep shared a suite with a phrenic named Eria, the youngest phrenic in the city, though only four cycles her junior. In addition, Paasek and Saldaria maintained their own suites on the level below. Saldaria was the eldest of the phrenics, at just shy of one hundred cycles old. She maintained a permanent residence within the city limits as her daily tasks were crucial to their survival. Her hands had a connection with the earth and plants that none could understand. She had nurtured the crops to new heights, producing far greater yields than what nature alone provided, easily outpacing the needs of their swelling population.

By appearance and action Saldaria appeared to be in the range of thirty cycles. Her hair was still unmarked by the slightest hint of grey, and her energy rivaled any. Such was the wonder and the power of the alexen that flowed through her veins. The remaining six phrenics, as was their choice, had remained with their families or loved ones throughout the city.

The hall was quiet as Ryl entered. He quickly made his way to the kitchen, tearing off a hunk of this morning’s bread and a small piece of cured meat. The majority of the sustenance provided to the citizens of Vim consisted of fruits and vegetables, harvested from the crops that covered over half of the city’s protected interior. The city also maintained a large pen for livestock, providing meat, milk, and leather as well as two enclosed fishponds set alongside the river that circled half of the city.

The river flowed from the waterfall that spilled from the mountain heights on the eastern edge of Vim. At its base, a small pool collected before traveling north then west along the border of the rectangular valley they called home. In the northwestern corner, the river ended in a second, smaller pool. Here a powerful eddy pulled the water downward, draining into the depths of an underground river. The wall was built high around the pool. A metal grate had been constructed ages ago just to the east of the eddy, a safety net in place should any fall in the lazy river before that point. To fall in the water past there was certain death.

It was also at this location in which the city buried their dead. The bodies, staged on small rafts were set loose, committing them into the depths of the swirling waters. Etched into the flattened stone face of the wall was a list of names, a memorial to those who’d passed on from the land of the living. The last sixteen additions to this list had been made all too recently.

Ryl ate while he walked, exiting the great room through the doorway to the right of the roaring fireplace. The door opened to a staircase leading downward to a small landing. The light from a lantern mounted to the wall illuminated the rough stone steps. From the landing the stairway turned to the left before heading further down into the mountain.

At the next landing, a long hallway led straight ahead serving as the residences for the phrenics. The first three suites were the only ones occupied on this floor. Space for another forty phrenics was built into the rock of the mountain.

Ryl’s destination led him further downward. He followed the descending staircase as it doubled back. At the base of the stairs the light from the room beyond flickered up the stairwell. A gentle breeze flowed up the stairs bringing with it the mild aroma of earth, sweat and smoke. Leaving the stairwell and brief hallway, the room opened into a massive circular chamber.

The ceiling was nearly ten meters high while the diameter stretched to a distance of twenty. Lit by the light of several burning torches, the temperature of the room was warm. A single hallway led off the far end of the chamber, though it ended abruptly in a solid stone wall. Its purpose was a mystery to Ryl.

To his right, a long row of varied weapons stretched out along the wall. Over the last several moons, Ryl had handled each of the weapons on the racks. His memory jogged by simply holding them in his hands. Though there was a recent familiarity, and his learning rapid, he felt the cycles of training—the knowledge of ages spent in practice—lurking within him, just beyond his conscious grasp.

Paasek awaited him along the far wall of the chamber. Running the circumference of the room, a stone step jutted out a pace, before giving way to the earthen floor of the indoor training grounds. How many phrenics had trained here before him? What secrets did they understand? In places, the walls were marred with scars from blades, dented from the impact of solid objects or charred from fire.

Throughout the moons, his study with Paasek had been more mental than physical, yet excruciatingly taxing nonetheless. For entire sessions, Ryl practiced maintaining focus on a rhythmic, slow and steady breathing. Other days, the skill of mindsight was his sole study. He had lost count of the times he’d begun his search only to have his concentration broken and the process started again. Once the application was perfected, Paasek added combat into the mix. In the midst of attack or defense, the councilor would quiz Ryl on the location of other phrenics within the city. At first, the practice caused momentary pauses as he forced his mind to concentrate on the skill while maintaining focus on the task at hand. His failures were rewarded with bruises and with pain.

As a result of the tutelage and repeated use, the skill had become second nature; the location and information it provided nearly automatic. With hardly a blink of his eyes he could find any phrenic inside the walls of Vim even as he blocked strikes from Paasek with ease. Ryl could penetrate Paasek’s defenses without distraction from