Page 6 of Dark Island: Rescue
"Oh, Esag," Annani gasped. "They are perfect. You are truly an artist." She reached for one of the figurines and clutched it in her hand. "I will distribute them all over the house. Perhaps they will trigger my remote viewing gift."
Esag lifted a brow. "Your what?"
"Remote viewing," she repeated. "Sometimes I cansee where my loved ones are. When Dalhu abducted Amanda, I saw her lounging in a bathtub, and I knew she was not suffering at his hands. The vision provided me and Kian with comfort." She smiled. "You see? You are not the only one whose paranormal talents are not working right. I have been hoping for a remote viewing of Khiann ever since I realized that he might be alive and in stasis. Before, I did not dare." She shivered. "The warriors who testified against Mortdh said that he had beheaded Khiann. Naturally, I did not want to see that."
"That's understandable." He pulled the rest of the figurines out of the bag and arranged them in a row on her coffee table. "You have a nice selection now."
"They are all beautiful." She reached for another figurine and examined it. "Have many people been stopping by your workshop?"
There was something in her tone that made Esag narrow his eyes at her. "Yes, they have. An unusual number, actually, who wanted to buy anything I was willing to sell. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"
Annani's expression was the picture of innocence. "I merely showed people the other figurines you gifted me. They were impressed by the artistry and wanted to see more of your work. I may have mentioned that you were willing to part with some of your creations for very reasonable prices." She paused, her smile widening slightly. "But I certainly didn't tell anyone to go and buy things from you. They did it of their own accord."
That was the Annani he remembered, full of good-natured mischief.
Esag felt his mood lighten. "Well, I suppose I should thank you. It does lift my spirits when people come by and purchase pieces. It validates the artistry and momentarily cures my imposter syndrome." He chuckled. "I didn't even know I suffered from it until Ingrid explained what imposter syndrome was."
"Your work is extraordinary, Esag. How could you think of yourself as an imposter? People recognize artistry when they see it." Annani refilled both their cups. "Since your work is in high demand, why don't you take a break from carving figurines of Khiann and focus on other subjects instead? If you make carvings of other clan members, it will help you socialize and get to know people better."
"I appreciate the suggestion," he said. "But I'm not sure it would help. What I need is an adventure. I need to get out of the village and do something that matters. That's why the Guardian Force idea appeals to me." He let out a breath. "But I can't do that until I find Khiann or at least get a clue about his whereabouts." Esag stared into his teacup for a moment, watching the steam rise and dissipate. "Has little Cyra brought you any more pictures?" he asked.
He was really desperate if he was hoping that the child would provide a clue they could follow.
Annani smiled. "She still draws stick figures of pretty doll men sleeping under the sand. She's persistent and enthusiastic, but the sand dunes she draws do not provide location markers in a desert that spans thousands of miles. The child might have a gift, but she's too young to make it useful."
"I wish I could do better for you," Esag said quietly.
"What I need is for you to stop carrying this burden as if it is yours alone." She covered his hand with hers. "The Fates will reveal Khiann's location when the time is right. Until then, you need to live, Esag. Not just exist, not just work, but live. That is what Khiann would want for you, and that is also what I want you to do."
Her words were kind, but they scraped against the guilt Esag had been carrying for five millennia. He didn't deserve to enjoy his life, not when he'd failed so many.
3
KIAN
Kian stood in the doorway of Allegra's room, watching Okidu perform his latest magic trick—making a coin disappear and reappear behind her ear.
"Again! Okidu magic trick, again!" Allegra demanded.
"Perhaps one more time, Mistress Allegra," Okidu said with the infinite patience that only a biomechanical marvel like him could summon. "After that, I must go and see if Mistress Syssi needs my help packing."
The butler might be becoming more sentient by the day, and he was a wonderful babysitter, but he still didn't fully grasp how different toddlers were from adults. His logical explanation would not stop Allegra from demanding that he perform the trick over and over again.
It was fortunate that Syssi didn't really need Okidu's help packing, as she had done most of the work the previous day.
The logistics were more complicated this time. Theirplanned vacation was five days long and to a place without supermarkets or mail order deliveries. That meant thinking ahead about every little item they might need and bringing everything with them.
Kian still wasn't sure he was doing the right thing by taking Syssi and Allegra to Safe Harbor, but Syssi was excited about seeing the island, and Allegra was excited about spending more time with Daddy.
His daughter would one day become the clan leader, and although she was still a toddler, she might benefit from being exposed to some of the things happening behind the scenes that were not too complicated to understand.
The island would become the clan's training facility, their forward operating base for Project Titan—a place where humans would learn to operate exoskeletons that would level the playing field against Navuh's army of regular and enhanced immortals.
The potential was phenomenal, but first, they needed proof of concept. If the experiment succeeded, scaling it with human warriors would allow them to amass an army equal or superior to Navuh's, and that would be a game changer in the millennia-old war between the clan and the Brotherhood over the future of the human race.
Safe Harbor was about three hundred miles from Navuh's island, which was too close for comfort in his opinion. Still, the obvious advantage was that it might be close enough for gathering intelligence on the Brotherhood's stronghold.
"Kian?" Syssi called from their bedroom. "Can youcheck if we have more energy bars in the pantry? I'm worried that I didn't pack enough."
