The boys were just as excited as she was to learn they actually had a plan. She got candles from one of Mathieu’s servants while the three of them gathered whatever else they’d need. They walked in silence for a little bit until they were close to the abandoned town.
“Keep an eye out for anybody but stay away from them,” Lydia instructed. “I don’t know if Ki’s still around here and he’s definitely not someone we want to encounter.”
They’d all heard the stories about the Keys; the stuff the five of them did in Idale and what they learned about the people who came before them. They had been adoptive siblings, for the most part—Haris was their father, Takane a mix of an older sister and mother figure, then Ki, Zenas, Umber, and Minne. Their roles as the Rabbit, Fox, Eagle, Cat, and Bear were then passed on to Dimas, Samone, Kiah, Lydia, and Imre respectively.
By the time they came, Idale was like every other abandoned town, all except for one house—the place the previous Keys had grown up. They more or less figured out what had happened and then went to bring the town back to life; or, at least, the most life they could give it. Still no one lived here, but it was like Idale was its own little bubble of spring. Since the five who made it that way were all still alive, the town still maintained that kind of beauty.
“Would there even be a reason for him to be here anymore?” Tim questioned. “You said he worked for Eldrianna, but you didn’t see him here. This place probably hasn’t had any visitors since you came twenty-three years ago.”
“The same could be said about before,” Henry remarked. “Mom, didn’t you say that someone was making tea in their old house?”
“As far as I’m aware, he never came to get it,” she replied. “Honestly, though, there’s no wonder he didn’t—all of us were there. It would make sense if he just didn’t want to let us see him.”
Tavin gave a more thoughtful comment. “The only reason he did anything was to keep Grandmother safe, wasn’t it? Without her, there isn’t much for him to justify what he did… bound to Eldrianna as her Messenger or not, would he still be alive if she’s dead?”
“That’s assuming he knows,” Henry pointed out.
“Or that he realized what she ultimately sacrificed herself for,” Tim mumbled. “He could’ve just as easily changed from fixating on her to her son.” A kind of awareness kept him from adding another name when he noticed the kind of look Lydia was giving him. She’d told the twins several years earlier but the full extent of the truth was something she wasn’t prepared to share to Tavin yet; that could wait until a better time, which really had nothing to do with what they were doing now.
When they got to the willow tree, Lydia parted a few of the branches until the other three walked through them. Then they all walked over and sat along the trunk. She solemnly pulled out the four candles and Tim took something from his own bag to help light them.
Then, with a shared, solemn expression and tone, muttered, “Boreí to fos na se vrei.” Though traditionally meant for the Lantern Festival, there was nothing wrong with using it now. It still meant the same thing—a wish that the thoughts of the living may reach the dead.
“Do you think… all of that really needed to happen to them?” Henry wondered aloud softly, watching the candles flicker in front of them. “They were only a couple of years older than the five of you when everything went wrong.”
“It’s probably one of the more fortunate things that have happened to Ilethera,” Tim pointed out, “assuming that everything said to happen to them are all true. For the most part, their story could’ve gone completely untold… Minne could have never mentioned it or the five didn’t need to learn about them in order to get to the Labyrinth.”
“Who knows what else has happened to others that no one ever heard of,” Tavin remarked. “Or the stories that felt too painful to repeat…”
“At least there’s someone who won’t forget them,” Lydia offered. “Someone willing to keep their memory alive, so that maybe a fragment of them are still here.”
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Henry was quiet as he debated what he was going to say. “But… is that really always a good thing..?”
There wasn’t any time for an answer before they heard another voice, causing them all to go still.
“I don’t see why someone from Orestis would be searching for someone like me.”
Lydia slowly got up to see if she could figure out who it was through the gaps in the branches, gesturing for the boys to stay where they were. She knew the voice was familiar—it wasn’t the first time she heard Ki—but the fact that it sounded like there was someone else made her cautious.
“Apparently this isn’t something Talia is capable of doing.”
The person Ki was talking to was mostly covered in a black-and-gold cloak and had their back facing the tree. She didn’t think she’d ever seen them before now.
“Why don’t I get some kind of warning about this?”
“It sounds like you have nothing better to do since your little obsession died. Now, I’m going to be honest with you. I’m only here because He commanded me to be and I am only with you because that is what He instructed me to do. He said nothing about making sure you were unharmed in this entire ordeal and I, for one, will not hesitate if you prove to annoy me.”
“I don’t even have any orders, so consider that threat mutual.” Ki sighed. “Now, if you’re not even going to pretend to practice any formalities, would you like to explain why you’re here?”
“I already told you that I’m fulfilling His orders.”
“And apparently he failed to mention that ‘Orestis said so’ isn’t a good enough excuse for me.”
“For someone with a background in Qizar’s teachings, you’re awfully ignorant…”
“Get on with the point, Jun.”
“I need your help in getting rid of something that we can’t normally access. As for the people who are going to help us access it… I believe the four of them are over there. They’re not very good at hiding.”
This was fine. It wasn’t the first time something like this had happened, and they were alright the first time. But the first time was also with Lewis and Elena who, honestly, Lydia could not have been less concerned about at that moment. Now she glanced at the boys and gestured for them to follow her lead in revealing themselves.
If there was one thing she wasn’t going to risk, it was messing with Messengers.
Ki only looked surprised for a moment. “The one that replaced Umber…” he mumbled, looking over all of them. His smile was hardly comforting when he saw Tavin. “And the kid Calli died for.”
Lydia got between the boys and the Messengers and Tim and Henry seemed to step in front of Tavin. Cautiously, she asked, “Where are you trying to go?”
“The mortals have more sense than you do,” Jun (or, at least, that’s who she assumed they were) remarked to Ki. They were no less mysterious facing the four of them, their eyes hidden behind a hood so the only thing that could be seen of their face was their smile. “We need to get to the Lost Archives, and the four of you are going to make sure we get there.”
She dared to ask one more question. “What are you going to do there?”
“Destroy every bit of evidence the place ever existed in the first place. It’s full of knowledge Orestis has deemed mortals should never see, so it’s best to get rid of all of it.”
…
Lydia had shared what Mathieu had told her about the archives and, after giving the warning that she didn’t know exactly where it would be (which was returned with a threat of their own), led the way. She couldn’t remember silently praying as much as she was now that she was leading them all in the right direction.
It seemed the only reason they made camp at all was because of Ki; what remained of his care for Minne extended to Tavin so that, when he started slowing down to the point that gentle reminders no longer urged him forward, Ki made the offer to stop for the night. For once she had to be grateful for his help.
Ki and Jun were caught up in a hushed argument. After eating, Tavin had curled up and gone to sleep. Lydia was staring at the map she had in hopes that something in it would stick out to her. Tim and Henry were just waiting for a time to talk.
“When’s the part where we make our daring escape from the bad guys..?” Henry asked nervously. He’d heard the other stories and knew how this usually went.
“They’re trying to get rid of all that stuff Mathieu told you about,” Tim pointed out quietly. “All that ancient knowledge… are we really going to go through with their plan to destroy it?”
She hated to think of it herself, but it was what she needed to say. “This is one of those not-so-epic moments. Right now this isn’t about what’s in the archives. It’s about keeping all three of you safe so then, maybe, one day you can laugh about this or forget it completely…”