SIX MONTHS EARLIER

"Let me through. Excuse me. Coming through." Rae pushed and fought his way through the mass of people crowded in the entrance square, arms wrapped protectively around the pile of books he was carrying. Someone jostled him from behind, one of the top books sliding off. He swore quietly, disappearing from view as he squatted down to fish for the fallen novel.

He got wrapped around several times as he crawled under the crowd, and he sighed in relief when he finally resurfaced - all books in tow - at the edge of the square. The outskirts of the mob were much easier to traverse, but Rae still proceeded more carefully, painstakingly making his way towards the library. People were giving him a few odd looks as he kept his back pressed against the walls of different shops, going from building to building as he made his way across the square. It took longer than usually necessary to traverse to the other side - he got turned around when the book fell and he had ducked under to get it back - and yet the crowd still showed no signs of dispersing by the time he reached the library’s doorway.

Rae had half a thought to go back and find someone that could explain what was happening, but he quickly made his mind up as he studied the filled square. He would need to get back to the library to return the books, and had no wish to go through the struggle of moving through a mass of people with an alarmingly tall stack of books in his arms. He could always ask one of the librarians.

Hurriedly stepping inside, Rae placed the tower of books he was carrying on the entrance desk, looking around for the librarians. Neither of the couple that ran the place was around, and he moved deeper into the building. Gloriously cool when compared to the already hot and humid weather outside, it was a place of rest for more than just body. The inner walls of the place that demarcated the different sections of genres were made from empty tomes artistically stacked on top of each other. Although empty, the covers were colourfully and thematically decorated, complementing both the mosaic on the floor and the organisation of the books. Rae picked out one of the rays of the wildly stylised sun depicted on the tiles, weaving through the book-dividers as he followed the winding path.

The Ga’anite section was one he had often sought out whenever he was in the library and his feet had just seemed to take him there. So ingrained was the familiar location of the books that he hadn’t even noticed it until he got there. Rae scanned the haphazardly catalogued titles, letting his eyes trace each of the letters of the worn out books. Most were of journalistic nature, with a few official reports on obscure towns he’d only ever heard mentioned in the same documents. The occasional story book also popped up, the monstrous drawings they held ingrained in his mind. He’d sworn off the reading of folktales after becoming aware that he and his people were often the villains in the Ga’anite written stories. It felt oddly insulting, even after comparing books and seeing how in the Kijahdar version, the Ga’anites were often the abhorrent ones.

"I was just looking for you, Rae!"

Rae let his hand fall from the cover of a travel log - the best one he'd found and one he had basically memorised by now - and turned around, smiling at the librarian.

"Jakar, hi. Is it about the books? They should all be in order, I double checked that everyone's books were there."

The librarian flapped his hand dismissively, shaking his head. "No, they're all here, thank you. I actually came to tell you about the new batch of titles that arrived just today."

"The political manuscripts my matria ordered? Wasn't that just a few days ago?" Rae groaned.

"Ha, if only, we're still just compiling the master-list. You’re free for a bit longer. No, it’s one I think you would quite enjoy.”

“Really? What is it about?”

“A diary, one of those travel logs you enjoy reading. I haven’t had a chance to look through it yet, but it seems extensive. I’ve put it on the front desk.”

“Thank you!”

Bidding goodbye to the librarian, Rae scampered through the shelves, hurrying towards the entrance. As promised, the book was on the desk. The cover was plain, of soft sheepskin, lovingly worn down by frequent handling. Two clasps kept it shut, reaching across to the back. Rae turned it around, tracing the scratchings on the back cover, wondering at the drawing. A map, or a constellation of a sort? The lines looked scattered, dotted at random, and of different widths; opposite to the cover, the drawing was not the work of any master. Despite the crude drawing, the care taken with the engraving was obvious in the careful - yet messy - strokes.

Rae ran his fingers down them again, wondering at the time it must’ve taken to mark the leather; the author of the journal - for he had made his mind up that only the one keeping track of their travels would spend time on unnecessary embellishments of an utilitarian-focused commodity. There was nothing more he wanted to do than to take the diary, find a cool, hidden corner amidst the stacks of books, and sit down and read, but he simply didn’t have time. Restraining himself taking a peek at the writing on the pages - the sides revealed nothing about the travels contained inside - he took the diary and walked out.

Distracted by the promise of adventure, he didn’t realise he forgot to ask about the crowd milling about, only reminded by it when he came to a sudden standstill moments after stepping back into the square. Resigning himself that the reading would have to wait, Rae wandered through the flood of people, holding tightly to the diary. Opposite the library one often found empty boxes lying nearby the wooden noticeboard, and Rae headed that way. He hoped that the delay of his reading would be worth it and that whoever was sitting on the boxes, addressing the pocket of townsfolk clustered around, could shed light on what was going on. As he walked, he picked up snatches of conversations. His brow furrowed: the phrases got increasingly worrying.

“Ga’anite ship…”

“…locked up… serves them right….”

“…war? Caught their spy red handed…. never tell…”

“ ….attack.”

“…missing…at sea…”

“Locked up…”

In a split second decision, Rae turned away from the noticeboard ahead, purposefully changing his path around. He needed solid information, something more concrete than speculatory gossip; there would be plenty of time for reading afterwards. Gossip was fleeting - even more so than written down words - and his curiosity hungered, driving him to get to the bottom of things. And, Rae reasoned, his parents would probably want to know what happened to draw such a crowd. Since he was in the right place and time, he felt obliged to follow through for them- even if they would more than likely already know all the details of what had happened.

Rae moved westward, taking the path next to the library. As he moved away from the square, the shop buildings gave way to more rudimentary stalls that were designed to be easily set up and taken down - a favourite of travelling merchants - until those too were replaced with nature. The stone road cut through the middle of a forest filled with sky-high trees, their leaves sheltering travellers from the sun. The trees’ trunks were impossibly narrow, making the canopies stand out. He'd wondered, once, at how they stayed upright when reason dictated that they should've bowed until the weight of the branches and leaves. The leaves were two palms wide, shaped like diamonds; gem's tears. Heavy, and astonishingly colourful with paper-thin veins that almost sparkled, even after the early-morning dew had evaporated.

The forest used to make him feel like a proper explorer, discovering nature's wonders in a patch of unruly wilderness in the middle of civilisations. The emotions he'd felt traversing the unknown with his friends had directly fed his wanderlust, reminding him of all the different books he'd read and places he'd heard about. Now, it just reminded him how trapped he was, experiencing the same wonder day after day until he no longer noticed the shine of the leaves, or the way the trunks seemed to hold up their leaves not alone, but together, each one helping support the canopy.

Rae walked through the forest, taking no notice of the colours around him. There was a slight scent of fish in the air, of salt, and he hurried, energised. He was nearly at the harbour. It was late in the day by now, and most of the vessels would be out at sea, fishing, but he hoped that there would be some slower sailors that hadn't yet set out that he could question.

"Hey, Skegg! Didn't think I'd see you here," Rae called out as he left the shelter of the forest, spotting a familiar face at the shipyard ahead. A large youth leaned against the side of one of the buildings, a basket filled with food in his hand. He noticed Rae and his face split into a wide grin as he pushed off the wall, meeting Rae as he crossed towards yard to the centre building. Already larger than many full-grown men, Skegg showed no signs that he would stop growing anytime soon; it was only natural that the townsfolk had taken to calling him a giant, and he took it good-naturedly, the unruly mop of hair on his head bouncing up and down whenever he played chase with the children.

Skegg wrapped Rae in a hug, making sure not to squeeze too hard, before stepping back and waving him into the courtyard. "Ho, Rae," he said. "Lokar got word that his shipment finally arrived, and he came here to oversee the goods. You know how he gets when new spices arrive. There isn't much to do while he's here, so he gave me the day off."

"And you are here then because?"

He shrugged a shoulder, lifting up the basket. "I brought some food for Halen and her pa. I was supposed to spend time with her yesterday, but then the shipment was delayed so Lokar still needed my help. I made this as a peace offering, but-"

"Well, why aren't you going in?" Rae interrupted. "I'm sure they'll understand. You work harder than any other apprentice, everyone knows how much this apprenticeship means for you!" he said ferociously. "They'll forgive you, for sure; Halen would be a fool not to, and I'm certain her pa will be glad that you've thought to stop by. Especially if they smell what you brought them."

His large friend smiled again, shaking his head. "I- thanks, Rae. But I already went in. Halen told me to wait outside, said she's working on a surprise and we can't lay eyes on it until it's done." The two went over to the building, sitting down next to the doorway as they waited.

Someone shouted at them from inside. “No peeking, Skegg!”

“We’ll wait, Len, don’t worry!” Skegg replied, wincing at the crash that sounded from inside.

Rae glanced at Skegg’s basket, saying, “But do worry a little bit, Halen, I think the food’s getting cold and you might want to hurry.” There was another crashing noise, but no further replies.

The two sat in companionable silence, waiting for Halen to finish working on whatever godsforsaken project she had taken up this time. Rae was studying the cover of the diary, but restraining himself from opening it and reading, and Skegg was dozing off, eyes closed, when he suddenly jolted. “I forgot to ask, I’m sorry Rae. What are you doing here? Did your parents send you to fetch something? Anything you need help with?”

“Kinda? Say, did you pass through that mob in the town square?”

“A mob? I saw a lot of people moving towards the square, but didn’t go through. Why? What’s happened?”

“Not sure, that’s what I’m trying to figure out. Had to return some books and it took me a good while to make it through, it was so tightly packed. Heard some rumours about a foreign ship crashing or something like that. There were a lot of different theories, and more than one person mentioned war. They seemed a bit afraid, Skegg, genuinely afraid.”

“War? But there hasn’t been one in generations!”

“That’s why I intend to find out what’s really happening. There would have to be a really big event for us to war with another nation, and I sincerely doubt my matria would let it escalate that far before trying everything to stop it.”

“Maybe she’s kept this hidden from you?” Skegg suggested, wiggling his eyebrows for good measure to show that he didn’t believe what he asked was true.

Rae laughed. “Skegg, she’s been trying to groom me for years. You know what she keeps saying, ‘A prepared ruler is a good ruler.’ She would never keep something this important to herself. And then after getting the council involved, she would go to hear everyone else out and.”

“You’re right. So, you’re here to find out what happened with the ship?”

He nodded. “Yeah. Like calls to like, I hear. What better place to learn something about a supposed foreign sailing accident than at the harbour?”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself,” Halen said, stepping out of the building and her hands together to shake off small flakes of wood. “You two can come inside now. Skegg, my father’s busy and can’t join us for lunch today, hope that’s alright. And Rae, I think I can help you if you’re talking about the Ga’anite.”