After Finn left, I poked Ute. “Stop that!”

“What?”

“You know what.”

“Sorry,” Ute said with false contrition. He hid his smile behind his hand.

“What is Midday?”

“Midday is a meal. All the clan leaders meet at the home of the clan chief to eat lunch and discuss events, most likely you today.”

“Tell me about the clans.”

“Well, our political system consists of a series of clans, nine of them. Each founded and helmed by our oldest families. Traditionally, these were the ones strongest in strength, magic, power. To be clan leader, you had to be the best, the brightest, the most charismatic. To be clan leader, you had to earn your place. Now, the position of clan leader is hereditary. Now, you just have to be born first to the right person.” His lips twisted. “I sound bitter, and that is because I am. I have always been the strongest of my clan. And I have had to watch as the demented son of my brother drove our clan into the ground. Clan Forg is a laughingstock. People flee it, and I stay and mourn.”

Ute gripped the table until his knuckles turned white.

“There are nine clan leaders. From among the clan leaders, there is a clan chief. In the past, the clan leaders fought to lead. There was a physical, mental, and magical test. The competition was a demonstration of prowess and a reassurance of prosperity to our people. Now it is all done by election. Votes bought with guile and deceit.

“Finn’s abilities should make him a strong contender for clan chief. As it is, he leads the largest, strongest clan, but Marin is chief. He is not a bad choice, but he is not a fighter, he is a politician. Our future lies in action, not inaction!” Ute collected himself. “You have not met him. He is not a bad sort, but misguided. Anyway, you have met his brother.”

He inclined his head to the door.

“Who? Wait, Finn?”

Ute feigned a jab to my face.

“Zanth?” Ooh, my favorite.

“Yes. Young Zanth is his brother. They are close, although Zanth is wild, as you have seen. He is also a fierce warrior, popular with the young. Marin is a traditional choice. Zanth will soon see the benefit of you once he gets over his revulsion.”

Revulsion was such a strong word.

“But for now, I would stick with me or Finn. You are located in the middle of Finn’s clan territory. He is the leader of Clan Orin. I have a room here, even though I am a member of Clan Forg.”

“This whole area is Finn’s. It surrounds the second biggest lake. The largest lake is to the north. That is where Midday meals are taken, at the home of the clan chief, Marin, which is where Finn went.”

“Do you think I could look around?”

“I do not think that would be the best idea right now. Not in those clothes. Not without Finn. Your guards are from all the clans. Finn has put himself into a precarious position by keeping you here and not turning you over to the clan chief, as he was asked to do last night.”

“The chief wanted me?”

“The chief wanted his people to interrogate you. I imagine they might not have been as…hospitable as we have been, though Marin has shown a particular interest in you. Finn told him you are injured and confused. He did not want to move you. I am one of the strongest healers, and a historian. I was a natural choice to take care of you. Finn wished to see you safe.”

“Yeah, right.” I snorted. “He just wants to control me.”

“I do not think that is his motivation. I think curiosity was, but now the magic is pulling at him. He feels it, just as I do. He will keep you safe. You confirm and throw into disarray our beliefs. You are not Fost, but you are blessed by the land, our land. You have the candrana.”

“What is candrana?”

“The connection, the power.”

“How?”

“I do not know but it is undeniable, and I have known you only a day. The more people meet you, the more they will see that. I believe it will make them long to get their powers back, as it does me, but Finn is right. It will scare some, and it will enrage others. Some families still lead, though they lack power. If we regained our magic, they could lose their position. There are those who would do anything to prevent that.

“I believe it is vital for the Fost to get their powers back. Finn agrees. The magic is the only weapon we have against the Imani. Neither of us believes they have forgotten about us. We know it is inevitable they will find us again.” He grinned and rubbed his hands together. “We will see how it all turns out.”

He did an awful two-step, and I had to smile. There was just something about him.

My grin faded. Everything I learned just spawned more questions, and I didn’t know how to go about getting the answers I would need if I was going to get home.

My head hurt. I rubbed my forehead and went to lie on the cot, while Ute resumed his reading.

I wandered back to the road. There were a few pools of blood. The young guy from earlier remained curled on the ground. No signs of the bear or anyone else. Nobody alive, anyway. Cars lay scattered in piles, and more debris littered the road. The same damn car alarm blared in the distance and the air carried the smell of decay.

Red light bathed the ground around me, and I looked up. This time I couldn’t hold back the laughter.

Holy. Shit.

That was a big spaceship. It was transparent against the night sky. The glow spread as far as the eye could see. The reddish lights blinked in a circuitous pattern along the translucent hull. I didn’t see any movement inside against the darkness.

“Elizabeth.” The voice sounded behind me, and I spun.

Hello.

A slight, creepy man stood before me, smooth platinum hair, white eyes, sharp narrow face. He smiled, and I felt a blow land on my skull with a wet slap.

I jerked awake, heart racing. I remembered the red lights. Was that the rest? Was that an Imani? I’d envisioned this hokey spaceship, but what I saw was so much more high tech. How much more advanced were they? When I looked at Finn, sometimes I saw this man in his eyes. My teeth clenched so hard, my jaw hurt. Hatred shot through me like a racecar leaving tire tracks. Whoever he was, he made my skin crawl.

Ute stirred something in the pot above the fire. My stomach rumbled in approval. I didn’t think I’d slept long, because Finn wasn’t back yet. Ute waved me to the table.

We sat down to eggs, I think, for lunch. Ute bailed a few minutes afterward and promised to return soon.

Alone with my thoughts, I prowled the room. A glint caught my eye.

A knife arched toward my face, gripped in a pale hand.

I gasped and stumbled back, hands raised to defend myself. It took a second to register it wasn’t real. I sobbed and bent over, gagging. My hands shook, and I pushed back my hair. My pulse thundered in my ears.

The glimmer was just the corner of a book. I let out a deep breath. Calm down.

I didn’t know whether that was a vision or a memory, but I didn’t want to think about it. Time for some distraction. I looked at the titles and picked up the one Ute had been reading, hands steadying.

The title read Candrana. From page one, I was caught.

The reading was heavy and engrossing. The candrana—connection to the land. Everyone had it to some degree. An individual’s magic was the expression of that connection.

There were two main elemental powers: land and sky.

Land magic differentiated into water and earth; sky magic differentiated into fire and air. This concept was familiar to me. It was the basic tenet of various ancient teachings on Earth I didn’t know that much about, and of video games on Earth I did know a lot about. That knowledge wouldn’t help me here.

The powers were counterpoint to each other. Fire balanced water. Air balanced land, fundamental opposites. They said opposites attract, but not so with the elements. Like putting the same pole of the magnet together, they repelled. Neighboring abilities, on the other hand, were intoxicating; we were drawn to powers that mimicked our own. From what I could understand, most people had a small degree of all the elements, but the user tended to be strongest in just one.

Earth magic was just like it sounded. The magic derived from the earth, the land itself; this was the primary source of magic for the Fost. It was considered the strongest element, but the least showy. It entailed an intimate awareness of the land, the changing of the tide, the movement of a blade of grass. Magicians strongest in Earth magic were physically adept, rooted, and calm. They tended to be fighters. They could move mountains, change the landscape around them. They were also the seers, the psychics. They sensed things others could not. They knew things others did not.

Fire magic was the power of healing and flames. There was a form of farming on my world called ‘slash and burn.’ They would cut down trees to clear areas to farm; the fire enriched the land. They would keep planting and harvesting until the land was barren. Once depleted, they would let it go wild for a few years and farm a new area, cycling around. The fire made room for new life. Like cauterizing a wound, fire healed. On Solum, those blessed by Fire were also said to be able to harness the heat and power and use it as a weapon.

“Fire.” Saying the word made it more real. Ute was right. I had fire magic. How cool was that?

Air magic had to do with harnessing the wind. How fast sound traveled was related to air resistance, or lack thereof. Air aided or destroyed communication. Air magicians could talk over long distances. They could track anyone, no matter where they went. They moved quickly, and the air itself sped their way. They were the ultimate scout, swift and silent.

Water magic had to do with the flow of the world. Water magicians were the wild card of magic users. They had a strong association with weather and fertility. They also had a strong association with land; strong Water magicians were rumored to be able to change shapes.

Interesting. I could heal, but I could also read and speak a language I didn’t know. That must be the magic. Otherwise, this would have been much more challenging.

I sat contemplating power as Ute strode back in. Two men followed him through the door, Zanth and the stranger from the clearing. There was something about him. My heart skipped a beat when he glanced at me. I shoved a piece of my hair behind my ear. Both men carried knives. The second man was taller than Zanth and Ute. A zing spread through me and gave me goose bumps.

I’d never gotten his name, but now I saw the resemblance. This was the brother, the clan chief, Marin. I straightened up, my spidey senses tingling, and greeted them.

“Good morning, Ute, Zanth, Marin.” I nodded my head at each of them in turn. Take that.

Marin didn’t look surprised I knew his name. Instead his grin stretched even farther. He bowed his head at me and smiled—a big, predatory smile.

“Good morning to you, Elizabeth, is it not?” His speech was smooth, voice deep like rum. I’d heard the murmur of it earlier, but the sound of it rang through me. It echoed in the unique way of the Fost. He sounded out each syllable of my name. He moved to sit by me at the table, and Ute dashed to the other side, wringing his hands. Unease slithered through me. Zanth remained standing by Marin’s shoulder.

“You can call me Beta.”

He inclined his head.

“My name is Marin Gaol. I am pleased to meet you.” He reclined in his chair as he said this, and he did, indeed, look mighty happy. That wasn’t a good thing.

“Nice to meet you,” I replied with caution.

We stared at each other for a few seconds, the hair rising on the back of my neck.

He had a rangy build with a diplomat’s grace. He wasn’t in leathers like the rest of the Fost I’d met, but in a linen-type tunic and pants. Barefoot, of course; that seemed to be the norm here. Shoes were for wimps. The edge of a tattoo peeked out from the neck of his tunic. I fought the urge to look closer, to lean closer… What was wrong with me?

Marin seemed quite centered: non-threatening, unflappable, and in command. Until I saw his eyes; his eyes told another story. There was intelligence in that gaze, a sharp, biting, savage intelligence. He might not have had to battle to get his place as leader, but he would have been chief regardless of the circumstances. It was there in his eyes.

I shivered. This wasn’t a man I wanted to piss off.

“All the clans are talking about you. Did you know?” he inquired, tapping his hand on the table.

“Yes, Ute did inform me I’d be the talk of the town.”

“Clans.”

Whatever. “I meant that as a figure of speech. Oh, never mind.” I sighed and adjusted my posture.

He stared at me, nonplussed a second, then began again. “I am told you remember nothing about how you came to be here. Is this true?”

I looked him straight in the eye. “I remember nothing. I don’t.”

He regarded me. His light brown eyes, for all their sharp intelligence, were quite warm, like honey. He glanced at our rapt audience.

Without warning, he stood up, chair scraping back, and held out his hand. “Walk with me.”

“Walk?” Startled, I looked at Ute, who was shaking his head. Marin saw and glared at Ute, who wilted under his gaze. He turned his attention back to me.

“Walk with me. Prove you are not afraid; prove you mean no harm. See the Fost. Let them see you. It will help allay fears.”

Ute still looked against the idea, but I reached out and took Marin’s hand.

I forgot about the magic.

When we’d looked at each other, I’d felt a zing, but the sensation that arced between us now was even more intense. I didn’t feel the warmth I’d felt with Finn. This was electric; my skin sparked, my heart thudded.

I heard the rush of wind blow past my ears, mussing my hair. Marin’s lips parted a bit, and his eyes gleamed. But he didn’t say a word. His hand tightened on mine, his thumb stroking the back of my fingers. His smile grew even wider, if that were possible.

I’d forgotten about touching. We didn’t want it known I had magic. It had been a bad idea to take his hand. I tried to tug my hand free; he just laced his fingers with mine. His smile became sly as he led me to the door. Ute got up to follow, but Marin waved him back.

“This is a private conversation, Ute. Continue the reading you were telling me about.” The words were an order.

Ute opened his mouth to protest, most likely, but Marin had already ushered me out the door.