She looked at the three bundles held in her three friends' hands. Ella had studied the part-destroyed book of the Evermen endlessly. She'd performed the equations, and calculated the requirements. The portal's requirements for energy were huge, but Ella had found a source of power that would enable her to open the portal, albeit for the briefest moments at a time.
In their hands, her friends held their houses' Lexicons. Bartolo must have fought like a demon to convince High Enchanter Merlon to relinquish the Alturan Lexicon. Jehral would have begged Ilathor, now Kalif, to lend Ella the Lore of Illusion. Shani's possessive grip on her bundle said enough.
"Now, what's in the coffin?" Bartolo said.
"The Emperor's brother-in-law, Lord Aidan," said Ella. "Killian's father. Here, help me with him."
~
THE SUN shot above the horizon as the group of four travelled across the harbour on a stout galley, their destination: the Sentinel.
Eight men rowed the galley while another piloted the vessel. The stone coffin lay in the centre of the boat. The rowers hadn't asked, and the four passengers hadn't been forthcoming with information.
Ella's mind swirled with symbols and properties, activation sequences and lore drain. She'd had little sleep and her eyes were heavy, but excitement and fear worked through her blood in equal parts.
If she succeeded in opening the portal, she would be crossing over to another world. She had no idea what to expect.
With each stroke of the oars the looming statue grew bigger, until it dominated their vision, massive and unearthly, a relic from another time. He stood tall and bold on the wide pedestal, with one arm raised and pointing upwards at the sky. A strange headpiece decorated the statue's head, a crown, with a rune decorating its front.
Ella could now see the low wall being built around the base of the statue. She saw soldiers in Alturan green and Tingaran legionnaires, as well as builders from Torakon in sand-coloured robes. Even at this early hour, the island was a hive of activity.
The galley tied up at a small pier where two other boats were tied up. Ella wondered if the rowers would help them with the coffin but they looked away, and the four friends struggled with it until they were on solid land. The galley departed without another word.
"Friendly bunch," said Bartolo.
"Let's see," Shani said. "We've got a coffin, and we're taking it to the one place they're forbidden to set foot on by imperial decree. Oh, and it's the place where rumours say the Primate died at the end of the war. Would you be nervous?"
"Well, when you put it that way," Bartolo mused.
An officer came forward, his men behind him, and Ella hoped for someone she knew, but this man wore Tingaran purple, and was a captain by his raj hada.
"Just what's going on here," he demanded.
"Captain, we're here on the Lord Regent's orders."
"I haven't been given any orders."
"Here," Ella said, holding out the pass Rogan had given her.
The captain quickly scrutinised it. "I'll need to have this checked."
Ella knew that with the coffin out of the cold ground, it would warm up, making her task much more difficult, if not impossible. The Lexicons had been renewed, but her three friends had each made a long journey, and with every moment the Lexicons' power would be draining away.
"I'm sorry, Captain," Ella said, "but I'm afraid we don't have time. My name is Ella Torresante. My brother is the Lord Marshal of Altura. This is Shani, an elementalist and adviser to the Petryan High Lord. This is Bartolo, a bladesinger, and this is Jehral, adviser to the Hazaran Kalif. You have our pass. We need to enter the statue."
"Two Alturans, a Petryan, and a Hazaran. Need I remind you you're on Tingaran soil?"
Ella was growing frustrated. "Captain, this isn't about house rivalries. This is important."
"What's in those packages?" the captain asked, pointing at the bundles Ella's friends held in their hands. "Give them to me."
"No," Bartolo said. "Ella, I'm not giving this to them. I swore an oath I wouldn't let it out of my control."
"Nor am I," said Shani.
"I will not hand this over," said Jehral.
Ella looked at the captain. He was inexperienced and jittery. Ella guessed this wasn't considered a rewarding assignment, watching men build a wall, and had been perhaps been given low importance. Yet the captain seemed like the type to take his role seriously, perhaps suffering from an excess of pride. Normally Ella would have applauded the man's duty to his orders, but now she cursed the stubborn captain.
The soldiers stood around their commanding officer, and Ella now realised he was trying to save face in front of his men.
"If you allow me to inspect your belongings, you may pass," he said.
"No," Bartolo said. He placed a hand on the hilt of his zenblade.
"Captain," one of the soldiers said, "he's a bladesinger."
"Men, at arms!" the captain called.
Swords were drawn. Ella wondered how they'd managed to get into this mess. She didn't want to fight the people she was trying to help!
"Stop!" Ella cried.
She had their attention, but she knew she had moments to calm the situation. "Captain, you're doing an excellent job. You're under orders from the Lord Regent and you're following them. No one is to go near the statue, is that correct?"