Chapter 52: The temple in the glade

Irin had gone down to the stable to check on the horses. They both looked fine; they had food, water, and a clean stall. She wondered how they would handle being on a ship.

"Irin?" She turned and smiled as she heard Koth calling her name. He approached with Lokhue.

"Hello, Lokhue. Is everything okay?" she asked as she walked towards them.

"Hello. Yes. My father sent me to invite you to the town hall to talk," he said, smiling back at her.

"I'm free," she said. They walked over to the town hall and were greeted by the chief.

"I heard you encountered Viturleiki yesterday," he said after inviting them to sit down and talk.

"We did. Charming," Koth said, and Irin had to look away to stop herself from giggling.

"He can be a bit... intrusive," the chief admitted. "I heard you've been in the harbour. Did you find a ship?" he then asked. Irin initially thought it was a way to change the subject.

"Yes. We will be leaving in three days," Koth told him. Both father and son nodded.

"Would you be open to helping us while you're here?" the chief asked. Koth looked at Irin. She nodded; she didn't mind helping the chief. Everything she had seen made her think he was a good person.

"We will do what we can," Koth answered.

"Just outside the town, in a glade, there is an old temple. We've always assumed it was a temple for Alesseja or another fertility deity. It's been over two generations since anyone worshipped in the temple. Still, we keep it clean and maintained. We may not worship the god, but we respect all gods," he told them. Irin nodded. It wasn't unusual for smaller temples dedicated to gods who weren't as popular to be abandoned. Most of the time, the people in the area still maintained the temple to avoid offending the deity.

"Then, a couple of months back, things started to happen," Lokhue said.

"Things?" Koth asked.

"The farmers nearby told us there were lights coming from the temple. When they went to investigate, the place was dark, and there was no sign of candles or lamps. I sent Viturleiki to investigate. He came back saying he was sure it was a wizard or warlock trying to scare people. I sent him back with two guards, with the goal of Viturleiki tracing the offenders. It didn't go as planned," the chief explained with a sigh.

"What happened?" Irin asked; she was now genuinely curious.

"Viturleiki's magic didn't work. He tried five different types of magic, he re-did it, nothing. He was in a particularly foul mood when he got back," the chief told them.

"It failed?" both Koth and Irin asked in unison. The two men nodded.

"Part of why Viturleiki was as... upset yesterday is because he suspects you of being behind the whole thing," the chief explained.

"But you don't?" Irin asked.

"No," Lokhue said. "For one, the two of you were with me and the group at the lake when Viturleiki's magic failed. We've got to know each other, and I can't see you doing something like that. My father and I were discussing it this morning after Viturleiki came by to accuse you, and we thought: Who better to look into this than the two of you?"

"Sounds interesting," Irin said to Koth. He nodded.

"We will do what we can. Who can show us the temple?" Koth asked.

"Melir knows the place; he can take you," the chief suggested. Koth and Irin waited for the young man to arrive, and then they walked out of the town with him.

"It's a really nice place. It's in this glade, and in the summer the area is covered with wildflowers. I really wish I knew which deity the temple is dedicated to," he told them as they walked. "Can you find out?" he then asked.

"Maybe," Irin answered. "If the god is on good terms with Alesseja, they may let me know who they are. Then again, they may be dormant if they don't have any followers left." He nodded. He took them to where the farmland met the forest. In a sunny glade, where you could hear the river, an old stone building stood. The grass around it held some white and yellow spring flowers, and the building itself was clearly old but looked to have been well kept. It was round, like a tower, but only one storey tall, and it had a domed roof.

"This is it," Melir said. Irin stood and looked at it, taking it all in. There was something about the place, a presence. She waited for a sign from Alesseja that the goddess objected to Irin being there. Sometimes the gods had disagreements, and in those cases, they didn't like their followers to tread on the other gods' sacred land.

"What do you think?" Koth asked.

"Alesseja doesn't seem to mind me being here," she said.

"I don't pick up any real arcane magic," he told her. She nodded.

"It feels peaceful and protected," Irin remarked.

"Should we go inside?" Melir asked.

"Sure," Irin said. She felt calm and at ease. Melir opened the wooden door, and they stepped inside the circular building. The room inside was round, and against the wall opposite the door stood a small altar, also made out of stone. On it stood a wooden bowl with water and a small offering of apples and nuts. The air was clear and fresh. Painted on the stone wall behind the altar was a mural. It looked to be as old as the building and had mostly faded. Irin walked closer to try and make out the details.

"Do you recognise the symbols?" Koth asked. Irin shook her head.

"This here almost looks like one of your spells," she said, pointing at a round symbol she initially thought was a sun. But the more she looked at the parts that were still visible, she was reminded of the tattoos on Koth's body. Koth walked up to her and studied the same symbol.

"It's not a spell; it doesn't have the right components. If you tried to use this, it wouldn't do anything; there are no symbols for focusing the magic," he explained.

"That is so cool!" Melir exclaimed. He had been listening to them and was absorbing all the information.

"Should we try some magic?" Irin asked.

"How about you and the boy step outside, and I'll test it?" Koth suggested.

"I'm the one who knows divine magic; I'm staying," Irin told him.

"I'm not a boy! I want to see too!" Melir objected. Koth nodded, clearly realising he was outnumbered, and gave up. Irin placed a candle on the altar.

"You first," she told Koth. He nodded and reached for a spell on his arm. Irin had seen him use it before. It let him control a flame in his outstretched hand. She looked at his hand. Nothing happened. She looked at his face and saw him frowning. "Nothing?" she asked. He shook his head, then shook his hand and looked as if he was trying again. Same result. "It's not due to..." Irin left the rest unspoken because of the youngster who was absorbing everything.

"No, this is different, this is not forceful. It's almost gentle, like a reminder I'm doing something I'm not supposed to. Strange," he told her. Irin prayed to her goddess and felt her prayer coming back to her. There was magic in the reply, but it felt different, and when she used it to light the candle, it instead created a floating light that slowly sank to the ground and fizzled out.

"I didn't mean to do that," she said.

"But you could use magic," Koth pointed out.

"Yeah, but it didn't feel like Alesseja's. If I didn't know better, I would say my prayer was hijacked by someone," she told him.

"I think I need to take a closer look at that mural," he said.

"You and me both," she agreed.