The Vaetra Chronicles: Book 01 - Vaetra Unveiled by Daniel R. Marvello
Authors: Daniel R. Marvello
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The glass rod was about the size of Sulana's smallest finger. It was clear with rounded ends, and had a twist to it with a swirl of blue along its length. The sun sparkled off the glass and lit up the blue swirl, which appeared to form lettering of some kind. "Pretty," I commented.
"Yes. Pretty and functional," she said with a distant tone. The chain attached to the glass rod had a ring on the other end. Sulana slipped the ring over her middle finger and let the glass rod dangle.
"What does it do?" I asked.
"It seeks," she replied, and held up her other hand to stop my next question. "Hold on for a moment while I concentrate on making it work."
She said something quietly and stared at the glass rod. I knew when she activated it, because it gave off a high-pitched tone. But it continued to just dangle and turn on the end of the chain. Sulana frowned and stared at it a bit longer. The rod continued to dangle and turn. It didn't seem to be reacting to her efforts in the way she wanted.
While Sulana worked, Daven stepped a little closer to me and watched me carefully. He seemed relaxed, but had one hand casually resting on his sword pommel. I wondered why he would suddenly perceive me as a threat of some kind, so I resisted the urge to step closer to Sulana for a better look at what she was doing.
She finally growled something in frustration and the rod went silent. She slid the ring off of her finger. "This is very strange," she said. "It's still not working."
"What is it supposed to do?" I asked.
"It is supposed to point the way to the item the thieves stole," she replied, stuffing the rod back into the pouch and putting it away.
"Didn't the noise mean it was working?"
Sulana stopped abruptly and stared intently at me. "You heard it?"
Her reaction surprised me. Uncertainty crept into my voice. "It started whining when you dangled it and spoke to it. Don't you hear it when you use it?" I looked at each of the others. "Doesn't everyone hear it?" But Daven, Talon, and Barek shook their heads, staring at me with unreadable expressions.
"I don't hear it. I see it," Sulana answered. "It glows a bit when activated and brightens when it finds what it seeks." She looked at me thoughtfully, her head tilted in an appraising manner.
This was news to me. I had assumed that everyone heard sorcery when it was used nearby and that most chose to ignore it, as they did with virtually everything else related to sorcery. This was the first time in my life that I had encountered someone who was willing to speak about sorcery openly.
"But what does it mean?" I asked Sulana.
"It means you are a Sensitive," she answered. "You're sensitive to vaetric manifestations." I looked at her in confusion. She clarified, "The workings of sorcery. Some people hear manifestations, some see them, and others smell them. A rare few even feel them as vibrations."
Then she shook her head and strode over to her horse to remount. "Well, let's go find this Ward and see what we're dealing with."
I felt as confused as ever, but this was obviously not the time to pursue the matter further. Daven and I followed Sulana's lead and got back on our horses as well. Thinking about Daven's behavior while Sulana had been using the device, I turned to him and asked, "Why the sudden protectiveness earlier?"
He narrowed his eyes at me and said, "Sulana is somewhat vulnerable while working that device. And sorcery can cause unpredictable reactions in nearby observers."
I nodded and responded, "I've seen that first hand. On the occasions when magic has been worked nearby, I've seen grown men shudder in fear or tremble with rage. It's no wonder sorcerers seldom take to the field with our soldiers. They might be run through by their own men."
"Exactly," Sulana broke in. "But I gather you don't have those reactions?"
"No. Being around sorcery has never bothered me, although you have to be careful who hears you say that. I normally pretend to be holding
The glass rod was about the size of Sulana's smallest finger. It was clear with rounded ends, and had a twist to it with a swirl of blue along its length. The sun sparkled off the glass and lit up the blue swirl, which appeared to form lettering of some kind. "Pretty," I commented.
"Yes. Pretty and functional," she said with a distant tone. The chain attached to the glass rod had a ring on the other end. Sulana slipped the ring over her middle finger and let the glass rod dangle.
"What does it do?" I asked.
"It seeks," she replied, and held up her other hand to stop my next question. "Hold on for a moment while I concentrate on making it work."
She said something quietly and stared at the glass rod. I knew when she activated it, because it gave off a high-pitched tone. But it continued to just dangle and turn on the end of the chain. Sulana frowned and stared at it a bit longer. The rod continued to dangle and turn. It didn't seem to be reacting to her efforts in the way she wanted.
While Sulana worked, Daven stepped a little closer to me and watched me carefully. He seemed relaxed, but had one hand casually resting on his sword pommel. I wondered why he would suddenly perceive me as a threat of some kind, so I resisted the urge to step closer to Sulana for a better look at what she was doing.
She finally growled something in frustration and the rod went silent. She slid the ring off of her finger. "This is very strange," she said. "It's still not working."
"What is it supposed to do?" I asked.
"It is supposed to point the way to the item the thieves stole," she replied, stuffing the rod back into the pouch and putting it away.
"Didn't the noise mean it was working?"
Sulana stopped abruptly and stared intently at me. "You heard it?"
Her reaction surprised me. Uncertainty crept into my voice. "It started whining when you dangled it and spoke to it. Don't you hear it when you use it?" I looked at each of the others. "Doesn't everyone hear it?" But Daven, Talon, and Barek shook their heads, staring at me with unreadable expressions.
"I don't hear it. I see it," Sulana answered. "It glows a bit when activated and brightens when it finds what it seeks." She looked at me thoughtfully, her head tilted in an appraising manner.
This was news to me. I had assumed that everyone heard sorcery when it was used nearby and that most chose to ignore it, as they did with virtually everything else related to sorcery. This was the first time in my life that I had encountered someone who was willing to speak about sorcery openly.
"But what does it mean?" I asked Sulana.
"It means you are a Sensitive," she answered. "You're sensitive to vaetric manifestations." I looked at her in confusion. She clarified, "The workings of sorcery. Some people hear manifestations, some see them, and others smell them. A rare few even feel them as vibrations."
Then she shook her head and strode over to her horse to remount. "Well, let's go find this Ward and see what we're dealing with."
I felt as confused as ever, but this was obviously not the time to pursue the matter further. Daven and I followed Sulana's lead and got back on our horses as well. Thinking about Daven's behavior while Sulana had been using the device, I turned to him and asked, "Why the sudden protectiveness earlier?"
He narrowed his eyes at me and said, "Sulana is somewhat vulnerable while working that device. And sorcery can cause unpredictable reactions in nearby observers."
I nodded and responded, "I've seen that first hand. On the occasions when magic has been worked nearby, I've seen grown men shudder in fear or tremble with rage. It's no wonder sorcerers seldom take to the field with our soldiers. They might be run through by their own men."
"Exactly," Sulana broke in. "But I gather you don't have those reactions?"
"No. Being around sorcery has never bothered me, although you have to be careful who hears you say that. I normally pretend to be holding
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