Chapter 15 - The Plan
After a while, though, they were finally all seated and one of them spoke up, "Take her with you when you leave," he said softly, "You have far better resources than we do for this."
Silaira's heart felt like it dropped from her chest to her stomach. That elder, at least, seemed to want nothing to do with her anymore. He didn't even look at her, just waving a hand in her general direction.
Another few nodded sagely, one eventually speaking up while looking to her father, "You must understand. We cannot risk the entire village. You've heard the stories as well as we have, what they'll do to get her. If it was just one guild we could, perhaps, offer something…But both…There's nothing we can do if the hawks and ravens get in a fight over her here. We can't stop them and you should know that."
Mystari's main guard had joined them as well and scowled heavily at the village elders. They were cowards, the lot of them, ears tilted with varying levels of anxiety. They were treating the child as if she would personally set their entire village alight and as if the guilds already knew about her. So long as they and the inhabitants of the village could keep their mouths shut, it was possible they would never hear of the affinity at all.
Mystari stated as much before he could growl the words himself, explaining that both the hawks and ravens relied on information in order to move. So long as no one passed information to them, the girl and the village were perfectly safe. Still, she conceded, it would be best to act as if they did know and traveling with Mystari was not safe for the child.
Not only were there the dangers of travel to worry about, but Mystari only traveled with the minimum number of guards possible. They were not equipped to defend from the guilds. Seeing the anxiety begin to refluff the poor child's tail, Mystari was quick to explain her own plan.
"Have the family stay with your town guards. There are plenty enough of them in the guardhouse at any time to warn off intruders. Neither guild will act if they think they'll be caught at it and you know that. They thrive off taking without being seen, so that they cannot be openly accused of their crimes. I will contact the capital as soon as everyone is settled for the night and have them send people to fetch her."
"Fetch us," her father said calmly, "We've planned for this day already. Our Silaira's affinities do not change our plans. We won't have her in the capital with no family to turn to as we each were."
Silaira's father had worked in the capital for some time, only settling back in their small home when he decided it was time to start a family. He rarely spoke of it, but he had once been someone fairly important, a messenger of the royal family.
Her mother had also traveled to the capital when young, training the water magic she occasionally still made use of. She was strong enough to have taken over Mystic Alnus' position but had declined in favor of having her own children and raising them. They'd yet to have a second child, though they had not given up on the idea quite yet either. Silaira would be a perfect older sibling, strong and kind, gentle and smart.
Mystari nodded slightly, having no issue with adding yet more people to keep close watch on the girl. She had not lied previously, the guilds absolutely relied on remaining unseen in their kidnappings. Each nation knew they took children but none had the solid proof needed to speak out against them.
Both guilds did a lot of good publicly, supporting all nations in their peace efforts rather than just one. Publicly, the raven's guild was known for gathering information, for finding missing people and missing things. The rumors of their unsavory side were, so far as evidence was concerned, merely rumors.
It stood to reason, though, that the guilds were not entirely good despite their public appearance. After all, children with the proper affinities would disappear and never be seen again or only be found decades later as adults. By that time, they were perfectly at home in the guild that had taken them, insisting that they had chosen to join of their own free will even if against that of their parents.
Mystari had always wondered how they managed to force that particular thing to happen every single time. Even the few young Faelyn they'd managed to sink their talons into had eventually turned up with much the same story. Silaira, though, very clearly wanted nothing to do with the guilds. Her tail was fluffed with anxiety and her eyes puffy from tears that had only stopped after coaxing from both her own mother and the head Mystic herself. If the guilds managed to take her, Mystari would know for a fact that anything the child said about being willing years in the future was a lie.
She sat with the elders, outlining the timeline of how long it would take the soldiers to reach the town. She purposely gave them the wrong timeline, stating the arrival would be near a week further out than it actually would. Her eyes moved around the room, taking in everyone's reaction to the information.
The elders of the village nodded sagely. Mystic Alnus frowned slightly, but it eased into a smile and nod the moment she met his gaze. He knew her to be lying, having made the journey himself more than once in his lifetime. Her gaze continued around the room, catching the brief confusion on Silaira's father's face as well.
She had found his face familiar throughout the night and had finally placed it, one of the royal messengers that had vacated the position. His decision to leave had been amicable enough. He'd fallen in love and did not wish to raise a child in the capital. He wanted his child to know the wilds of the forest rather than the tamed parts of it. He also knew the length of the trip, but was smart enough to understand that she lied to keep his family safe.
There was always a chance one of the elders would tell the guilds themselves in hopes of making sure none in the village were harmed. If they had the wrong dates, there was still a chance to get Silaira out safely.