The sound of braying horses in the distance follows us as we flee to the local village. We have a head start at the very least. But this time, I do not have Dar watching my back. A tiny part of me can see how useful she might be if we let her out, but it isn’t worth the risk.
There’s no telling the havoc she might wreak.
When we reach the village gates, we slip through unnoticed thanks to my shadows. And we stay hidden all the way to the back door of the blue building we saw Miranda and Alfred use earlier today. Tonight the building is cloaked in shadows just like we are, almost like it’s hiding. I take a deep breath, then I release my shadows and knock.
It takes a few moments—long enough to make me wonder if we should just run—but the door finally creaks open. A tall woman—Alsa, presumably—with pale hair and big round glasses gazes down at us as she pulls her robe more tightly against the chilly night air.
“If you need an elixir, come back in the morning. And use the front entrance. We’re closed now.” She begins to shut the door.
“Wait! Please,” I say. “Miranda and Alfred told us to come here for help.” I lower my voice. “They’ve been taken by Lady Aisling.”
The woman’s expression changes, and she opens the door wide. “Get inside before anyone else sees you.” She locks the door behind her.
Alsa leads us into a warm kitchen in the living quarters behind her storefront and directs us to take a seat at the table. The place is homey and neat, like she had just finished cleaning up for the night when we knocked. “Tell me everything,” she says.
Lucas has grown quiet beside me, so I quickly relay the events of the past hour. Her scowl deepens with every word. When I finish, she gets to her feet and begins rifling through a nearby cabinet.
“Lady Aisling has been causing trouble for a very long time.” She clicks her tongue disapprovingly. “Most folks without talents just assume she’s an eccentric noblewoman from another territory. They have no idea that she steals children, because she’s gotten craftier over the years. She’s careful to cover her tracks. But to abduct your parents when they don’t have talents? Well, that’s just spiteful, now isn’t it?”
“How long, exactly, has she been doing this?” I ask. “Do you know?” This is a thing I have long wondered. Dar isn’t sure how old she really is, or how long she spent as a shadow. Time passes differently in the shadow world, apparently.
Alsa raises her eyebrows. “Now that is a mighty good question. Longer than any normal person has a right to live, that’s for certain. The first record we have of her stealing a talent is one hundred years ago.”
I gasp. “How is that possible?” My mind reels from the revelation of how old Lady Aisling—and Dar—must be. I can’t even imagine it. She has had decades to perfect her talent; how can we hope to win against her?
“A lot is possible when you have any talent you desire. At some point, she must have acquired a life bringer. Someone who can heal others and bring them back from the brink of death. And to stay young, she must have a youth keeper too. Her garden is full of the most coveted talents. The sheer size of it was enough to impress the Zinnian nobles and convince them she’s a noble herself. She wasn’t born high, mind you. Her title of Lady is just airs she puts on, aided by her trove of magic.” Alsa sighs. “You can spend the night here in my safe room. But you’ll want to leave at dawn. The village will be the first place the hunters search for you.”
I frown. “But where should we go? Miranda and Alfred told us we should stay here and wait.”
“That, my dear, was before they got caught. This changes everything.” She places an old book on the table between us and flips through until she lands on the section she wants. The writing is in a tiny hand, and the ink is faded on the yellowing pages.
“I met with Miranda and Alfred yesterday. They told me about the comet returning early. A sky shaker is the only reasonable explanation.”
“Lady Aisling must have stolen their talent.”
Alsa gives me a shrewd glance. “Aye. It’s been a long time since a sky shaker has been around. They are among the rarest of talents. And dangerous. It is troubling for Lady Aisling to have one, let alone have the gall to use their magic.”
“How are they dangerous?” I ask.
“They can move anything in the sky wherever they want it. The sun, the moon, the stars, or in this case, comets.”
“But why is that so dangerous?”
“Think of it this way: Everything in the heavens is already in perfect alignment. The sun shines when we need it to, the moon comes out to light our way at night, the stars twinkle when they should. And that comet flies by every twenty-five years. Now, move one of those things out of its regular path, and it might get in the way of the others. It could throw the skies above completely off-kilter.”
I’m still not clear why this is terrible, and it must show on my face. Alsa sighs, but, before she can respond, Lucas speaks. “If the sun doesn’t shine when it should, plants won’t grow. If they don’t grow, we won’t have food.”
“Precisely. Also, there are other celestial bodies like meteors that can be thrown off course too, which means they might fall and damage our lands. Without careful planning and consideration, a new sky shaker could be dangerous.” She points to the book in front of her. “One such event was recorded in our histories here. A sky shaker fell in love with a noblewoman and wanted to prove his devotion. He moved several stars into a new constellation just for her, making navigation difficult for those who relied on the stars to guide them. Then, she rejected him for another suitor.” Alsa closes the book and leans back in her chair, folding her arms across her chest. “The sun didn’t shine for two weeks until his closest friend managed to talk some sense into him and got him to put the skies back into their proper alignment.”
Lucas’s eyes are wide, horror-struck at the prospect of no sunlight for that long. But I can only think of how much I’d love to be safe in the darkness for more than just a few precious hours each day.
“That’s horrible,” Lucas says.
“It is,” agrees Alsa. “Which is why we need to find the sky shaker.”
“But if Lady Aisling has captured them, she isn’t just going to let them go,” I say.
A grim expression crosses Alsa’s face. “No, she’s not. She brought the comet around early to have more talents to harvest. The older generations of talented folks have all disappeared, either long dead or planted in her garden. They didn’t have the network to warn and hide them like we do now. She certainly isn’t going to just release a newly acquired talent. We’ll have to find a way to free them so that they can set the heavens right again before it’s too late.”
“How do you know all this?” I ask, feeling bolder than usual.
Alsa cracks a smile. “Have Miranda and Alfred told you much about the network?”
We nod, neglecting to mention they haven’t told us very much at all. We don’t want to risk her clamming up.
“I’m the historian. That’s why they came to me. We haven’t seen a sky shaker in ages, and they wanted to be sure they understood the ramifications. I was going to leave in the morning in search of a talent that could help.”
I sit up straighter. “We could come with you. Maybe we could help?”
Alsa considers, scratching her chin. “Well, I’m not as young as I used to be. And I don’t have a talent. My daughter was the talented one.”
“Was?” Lucas says.
Alsa’s face darkens. “Yes. Until Lady Aisling stole her. At least, I believe she did. It was years ago that she went missing. That’s when I joined the network. I don’t want any other parents to have to suffer the same fate.” She stands up. “But without magic, I might be a liability. I know about your talents—Miranda and Alfred told me—and they’re formidable.” She leans over to peer in our faces. “Are you brave?”
An odd feeling passes over me, something like an electric chill. I take Lucas’s hand and squeeze it. “Yes. We are.”
“Then perhaps you could come with me. With your talents you’ll be better equipped to get other talented folks to help too.”
Lucas seems like he’s coming alive again. Having a purpose like this helps.
“We’ll do it,” I say. “But where do we start?”
Alsa grins. She presses the book into my hands. “This is a history of talented folks which contains the only known records on sky shakers. Look for signs and commonalities. Also, you’ll want help from those involved in the network—”
Before she can finish her sentence, someone pounds on her front door. She pales and ushers us into a back room, then presses a hidden button that reveals a sliding panel and small chamber beyond. “Stay here,” she says, nudging us inside. Then the panel slides back, and she’s gone from view.
On the inside of the chamber are two buttons, one to open and one to close, but we don’t dare press either without permission. The shadows deepen around us. Wide-eyed, we sit in the dark room and wait and listen. Dar is still and quiet inside my bag; I hope she understands the importance of remaining silent.
We can’t make out words, but we hear the bang of the door being shoved open. Alsa shouts, but it gradually gets softer, as though she’s being dragged away. Then more noises—beds and tables being upended, cabinets and drawers emptied, bookshelves tipped over. With every clang and bang our pulses spike.
But no one finds our hiding spot. And Alsa does not return, even when the noises fade and the door to the shop slams shut.
We wait, shivering, for one more hour before we dare to open the panel. Then we venture out into the ransacked house.