Golden Fool

From a fold in his robe, he brought out the figurine from the beach. She dangled from her chain, small and perfect. Her sleek black hair was crowned with a blue ornament. “I found this on a pile of rags in the corner. Is it yours?”

“No. But that ‘pile of rags’ was probably my old work clothes. The necklace belongs to the Prince.” As Chade frowned at me in puzzlement, I added, “I told you about it. The time we spent on that strange beach. He picked it up there. I ended up putting it in his purse for him. I should give it back to him.”

Chade had scowled then. “When he told me his tale of his adventures, he had little to say about the journey through the Skill pillars or his time on the beach. He certainly never mentioned this.”

“He wasn’t trying to deceive you. Even for an experienced Skill-user, going through a pillar is an unsettling experience. I took him through to the beach without warning; he had no idea what had happened to him. And, to return, I took him through three pillars. I’m not surprised his memories of it are scrambled. I’m just glad he is sane; most of Regal’s young Skill-users did not fare so well.”

A frown furrowed his brow. “So. An inexperienced Skill-user cannot pass through a pillar on his own?”

“I don’t know. The first time I went through one, it was purely accidental on my part. But I had spent that whole day in a sort of Skill stupor, on an Elderling road . . . Chade. What are you thinking?”

His quizzical look was too innocent.

“Chade, stay away from those pillars. They are dangerous. Perhaps more dangerous to you, who may have traces of Skill magic in your blood, than to regular folk.”

“What are you afraid of?” he asked me quietly. “That I might discover that I possessed an aptitude for the Skill? That perhaps, if I had been taught as a boy, I too could wield it now?”

“Perhaps you could. But what I fear is that you will read some cracked and dusty old scroll and risk yourself in some experiment just when the Six Duchies needs you most.”

Chade made a disapproving grunt as he got up to place the figurine on his mantel. “And that reminds me of another thing. The Queen sends you this.” He picked up a small scroll from the mantel and handed it to me. Unfurled, I immediately recognized Kettricken’s squared hand. She had never become accustomed to the flowing script we used in the Six Duchies. Twelve careful runes were inked there, and by each one was a single word. “Harbor, beach, glacier, cave, mountain, motherhouse, hunter, warrior, fisher, allmother, smith, weaver.”

“It’s from some game she was playing with Peottre. I see why she sent you this. Do you?”

I nodded. “The runes look similar to the runes on the Skill pillars. They are not the identical runes, but they look as if they might be from the same system of writing.”

“Very good. But one, at least, is almost identical. Here. These are the runes that marked the pillar that you and the Prince used. The one near the old mounds.”

Chade took up a second scroll from the table between us. It was obviously the work of a true scribe. It showed four carefully replicated symbols, with the orientation of each facet of the pillar marked, as well as notations on the size and placement of the originals. Chade had obviously sent his little bees out to gather information for him. “Which one took you to the beach?” Chade asked me.

“This one.” It was similar to the one for “beach” on Kettricken’s scroll, save for an extra tail or two.

“And did an identical one bring you back?”

I frowned. “I had little time to note the appearance of the one that brought me back. I see you’ve been busy in my absence.”

He nodded. “There are other stone pillars within the Six Duchies. I’ll have information on them within the next few weeks. Obviously they were originally used by Skilled ones, and somehow the knowledge of how they worked was lost for a time. But we have a chance to regain it.”

“Only at great danger. Chade, may I point out that our trip to the beach ended with Dutiful and me underwater? It could have been much worse. Imagine if one of the exit pillars was facedown on the ground. Or shattered. What happens to the user then?”

Chade looked only mildly flustered as he said, “Well, then I assumed you would see the way was blocked and come right back.”

“My assumption is that I would be expelled from the pillar into solid stone. It isn’t like a doorway where you can halt and peek out. It dumps you out, as if you’d stepped through a trapdoor.”

“Ah. I see. Well, then their use will have to be investigated much more carefully. But as we read the Skill scrolls, we may be able to decipher what each rune means and at least establish where each ‘gate’ originally opened. And thus, eventually, determine which ones are safe to use. And perhaps right or repair the others. What other Skill-users did in the past, we can reclaim.”