Astral Tide (The Otherborn Series) (18 page)

Tora suddenly piped up. “I think London is right.”

Kim gawked. “Just a second ago you were arguing with her!”

“About
this
,” Tora corrected. “I think London is right about this.”

Elias looked from Tora to Kim, who sighed loudly and nodded. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but the girls have a point.”

Everyone looked now to Zen. He drummed his fingers on the rough surface of the old wooden table. “I gotta be honest. Elias, you give me the creeps.”

“Zen!” London and Tora shouted simultaneously.

“Relax,” he said, “I wasn’t finished. Yes, you creep me out,
but
you obviously know a lot more than we do. Frankly, I don’t think we stand a chance against the Tycoons. But maybe you do.”

London took a deep breath. She combed her hair back with her long fingers and squared Elias in her most determined gaze. “So, Elias, will you join us?”

The old man’s eyes followed each of their faces around the table. When they fell on London again, he closed them and nodded once.

London blew out a breath of air she didn’t realize she’d been holding. “Great. That’s settled. We go tonight then. We’ll tell Hantu and together make for the grove.”

“What about the rest of it,” Kim pressed her. “The whole ‘practicing outside’ thing?” He made air quotes with his fingers as he spoke.

London scratched at her forehead. “Right. Well, here’s how I see it. If we just disappear off their radar, Avery will know something is up. She’s been one of us before, a member of the Circle. She held a seat. So maybe she can penetrate the grove, I don’t know. If not, she’ll certainly start trying to figure it out once we vanish inside it. And if she catches wind of Elias, she could send Tycoon convoys here to take him in. We need Elias safe and we need him to remain outside the Tycoons’ knowledge. That’s why we can’t just take him with us. Even if we get captured and taken in, as long as Elias is still here, holed up with his bees, he can try to help us from the Astral.”

London looked around, heads were bobbing in agreement. She was afraid this would be a hard point to sell, but her logic was solid and it seemed to be sinking in. “If we take turns practicing in the Midplane, pretending to warp—
poorly
—we can use this whole spying thing to our advantage.”

Tora’s vibrant eyes narrowed into concentrated slits. “You mean, a diversion?”

“Exactly.” London smiled.

“Make them believe we know less than we do,” Kim finished.

“Avery’s overconfident right now. If we keep her that way, she’s going to make mistakes. She’s going to let her guard down.”

“Wait,” Kim’s fingers flexed where they were holding onto Tora’s. He shook off her hand and leaned across the table toward London. “How do you know that?”

And here it was, the moment London was not ready for.
Time to fess up
. “Because I saw her. That’s what Elias and I were doing in the Astral. He took me to the plane she and Rye are using to meet secretly. I also think it’s part of how they’re spying on us.”

“She and
Rye
?” Kim echoed.

London looked down at her own hands. Once, her fingers had been laced through Rye’s as Kim’s were with Tora’s only a moment ago. This was going to break everyone’s heart. “Rye is helping the Tycoons, as you know already. But what you don’t know is that he’s having an affair with Avery. They’re an item now…or something.”

“He’s in love with her,” Zen added.

“Or at least pretending to be,” London amended. She looked away when Zen gave her a questioning glance.

“He’s in love with her?” Kim asked.

“Something like that,” London confirmed.

“No.” Kim shook his head. “No way. Maybe he’s helping the Tycoons because he doesn’t have any choice, but there’s no way Rye would have anything to do with that bitch after what she put us through.” He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms stubbornly.

Tora was silent. London knew that before Kim, Tora had a brief thing for Rye. More than that though, she trusted him. And he her, when London still didn’t. Even for Tora, this would be difficult.

“Look, I know it’s a big, bitter pill to swallow,” Zen piped up. “But we’d better get it down. The sooner we start seeing Rye for what he is now, our enemy, the better off we’ll be.”

Again, London avoided his gaze. No matter how she tried, she just couldn’t accept it as easily as Zen could.

Elias looked at Zen. “Holes in your deck, boy. The suit of hearts will blind you to the Joker.”

Zen rolled his eyes. “Okay, that right there? That’s gotta stop if we’re going to like, adopt you into the Circle. Can’t you pick on someone else for a change?” His feathers were noticeably ruffled, but there was an amiable undertone that let London know he wasn’t as offended as he seemed. But London wasn’t sure that was a good thing. Either way, she didn’t think Zen was taking Elias’s warnings seriously enough.

“Anyway, we need to utilize Avery’s arrogance to our advantage. And at the same time, we can feed her and Rye false information to keep them off our trail,” London said, desperately needing to talk about something other than the subject at hand: Avery + Rye = couple.

“Better keep it subtle. Toss her a few easy ones now and again so she doesn’t get wise,” Kim said. “Let her get close once in a while, or think she’s getting close.”

“Right,” London nodded.

“But what if Hantu is right? What if the Circle can’t be trusted? What if the grove has been compromised?” Tora added.

London combed through her silky jet waves with her hands. “For starters, no more witnesses. Only the Circle can use the grove for now. It has to be off limits to others.”

“Okay,” Tora agreed. “But the Circle has nine seats. You are three. Hantu makes four. Elias will be five. That leaves four others who are still suspect. And in case you forgot, I’m not one of them. How can I meet in the grove if you make it off limits to everyone outside the Circle?”

London scratched at her head. Tora had a point. She kept conveniently forgetting that the Seer wasn’t Otherborn, nor was she a member of the Circle.

“Clearly, Rye has defected as well,” Zen said smugly. “His seat is forfeit. It’s yours if you want it.”

London started to argue, but realized she had no ground to stand on. Whatever was going on with Rye, for now it appeared he’d turned on them as well. They couldn’t save his place until London decided she had enough proof to let him go. And they needed Tora inside. It made perfect sense. “Exactly,” she said, smiling at Zen to show she was on board. “The Circle will get two new members instead of one.”

“And the other three?” Tora insisted. “Can they be trusted?”

It had been a long time since Si’dah sat in her seat among the nine stones. She’d all but forgotten the three other faces who made up their council. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “Elias, do you have a read on the rest of the Circle?”

Elias shook his head. “I told you, inside the grove they are cut off from me.”

“All the more reason to bring you into it,” London replied. “Once you’re inside, do you think you could read them? Find out if they’re still trustworthy?”

“Possibly,” Elias agreed. “The Oracle never lies.”

“It’s worth a shot,” Kim said with a shrug.

Zen only smacked his lips and popped his knuckles. He still wasn’t sold on the Oracle’s power.

London looked around the table at her companions. They were about to waltz into the Astral and pull off a coup of the only alliance of dreamwalkers ever formed. Desperate times called for desperate measures. “I suggest we all try to get some rest today then. We’ve got a big night ahead of us.”

THEY SAT IN a circle on Elias’s floor, legs folded, knees touching. Between them lay the scrap remains of Elias’s Oracle. He was going to teach them how to charm. One lesson for today, then they’d take it easy. Kim was going first.

“Now, let the Oracle do the talking. Let something sing to you. You see? That’s how you pick a charm, you let it pick you first,” Elias instructed. He was pacing behind them, moving in slow circles back and forth around their little huddle.

Kim held out his hand, palm down, and moved it silently just over the surface of the pile of items, feeling for something London couldn’t quite detect.

“Very good,” Elias cooed. “Feel for the pull of it…your charm.”

Zen crossed his eyes at London to make her laugh and Kim just looked plain confused. But Tora was mesmerized by what was taking place under his hand, her face was a canvas of concentration.

At last, Kim reached down and plucked a pitted green marble from the mix. “This one,” he beamed, holding it to the light. He looked at Tora. “It reminds me of your eyes.”

“Oh, gag,” London said but Elias was pleased.

“Yes,” Elias agreed with a nod. “That is a good one.”

“Now what?” Tora asked.

“Now he must reach deep inside himself and find his own, personal portal to the Astral. It’s there that he’ll form his intention,” Elias instructed. “Remember to carry your charm with you,” he added as an afterthought. “You need to see it in the Astral for this to work.”

Kim nodded and closed his eyes. As London had done before, he let Tora guide him carefully into a deep state of relaxation until it seemed Kim was all but gone, lost in meditation, and his body was merely a shell. Once she guided him there, Tora stopped talking and allowed Elias to take over.

“See your charm in the palm of your hand,” Elias whispered into Kim’s ear. “And in your other hand, visualize your intention.”

“How is he supposed to do that?” Zen whispered, but Elias shot him a dirty,
keep silent
look.

“When you have both perfectly formed, bring your hands together, in both worlds at once, in order to do the binding.”

They watched as Kim’s hands twitched, the one holding the marble slowly uncurled, and then they came together, palm to palm, holding the marble between them. His eyes never moved behind his lids, but before theirs a soft light manifested between Kim’s hands and then winked out. All at once, he was back, blinking and grinning like a wicked child.

“Well?” Tora asked. “Did it work?”

“I think so,” Kim said, shaking his dark mane. “Wow. That was wild.”

“What was your intention?” London pressed him.

His grin turned even more devilish. “Invisibility.”

“Don’t you think that’s reaching a bit for your first time?” Zen cocked an eyebrow at Kim, his handsome face magnificent in the candlelight. “I thought these were supposed to be for protection and fertility, stuff like that.”

Kim held one hand up and wiggled his fingers. “Sticky fingers, remember? Could come in handy for a guy like me.”

Elias rubbed his chin. “It is a lot, but not beyond you, I think.”

“Not beyond him?” London said, smacking her forehead. “He’s sitting right there! I can see him. Obviously it didn’t take.”

“Well, he has to activate it first.” Elias gestured to Kim. “Go ahead, try to use it. Your intention was wrapped up in your desire to be invisible
at specific times
, not all the time, such as when engaging in sneaky or dishonest behavior. Try something now and let’s see if it works.”

Kim stood and began circling the room. He tossed the marble from one hand to the next. As he neared her side, London suddenly couldn’t see him anymore. First he was there, then he just wasn’t. She felt an odd sensation, a sort of tug, on one hip. And before she knew it, he reappeared in front of them all laughing, tossing her piece of Zen’s geode in one hand as he gave her a cocky smile.

“Did you see any of that?” he asked.

“Nothing!” Tora said, beaming with pride. “You just vanished and then appeared out of nowhere.”

“I had to set my sights on something, like Elias said, before the charm became effective.” Kim tossed London her rock and kissed his green marble. “This is so cool.”

“Great. Just what we need. For you to be an even better thief. Nothing will be safe from your paws now,” London griped as she tucked the geode away. Her face was flush with embarrassment and she could see that Zen was blushing a little, too. That stone, that moment, was something private and special. And Kim, without meaning to, had exposed it.

“Hey, don’t get sore, London. You can’t be the best at everything,” Kim said, taking his seat and rejoining their circle.

Elias frowned at them all. “Quiet. It’s another’s turn.”

“Wait,” London said. “So, your bracelets, the ones with all the knots in them? You’ve set an intention for each of those knots, right? Like a bunch of charms in one?” Suddenly, Elias was looking a little less crazy and making more and more sense.

“Yes,” he confirmed. “But it’s enough for you to learn to bind one right now. Now, who’s next?” He turned to Zen. “You.”

Zen shrugged. “Okay. Let’s get this over with.”

“Careful, London,” Kim teased. “You know, Zen. He might go for fertility.”

Zen ignored Kim and studied the pile of scrap before him. He finally picked up a short pencil with no eraser. “I want to be able to write messages that only the one they’re intended for can read,” he said looking to Elias.

“Always the poet,” London muttered.

“That’s like mine, copycat.” Kim frowned at Zen.

“It is not,” Zen said, giving Kim a shove.

London was exasperated. “Would both of you just grow up? Go ahead, Zen.”

Zen closed his eyes and Tora’s gentle voice led him deeper and deeper into himself until, like Kim before him, he was perfectly still, his arms slack, his face blank, his soul absent.

Just as with Kim, Elias instructed Zen on how to visualize the pencil and his intention at once, and to bring them together in both worlds, to bind one to the other. London had a hard time imagining how Zen would visualize his intention, but he seemed to have gotten it because they watched in awe as his fists wrapped around each other, the pencil between them, until the light flared inside and went out.

Zen came to and everyone urged him to try out his charm. Elias ripped a corner from one of the pages in a book of his and handed it to Zen. Carefully, turning his back so they couldn’t watch, he scrawled the note. Then, with a flush, he passed it to Kim.