A Thread in the Tangle by Sabrina Flynn Read Free Book Online Page A

Unfortunately, she had been skipping her lectures more often than not, and Oenghus had finally scolded her for disappearing, because every time she deviated from her carefully monitored schedule, her protector, along with a number of guards were forced to drop everything and go look for her.
    What, she thought, was the point of having guards posted around the castle for her protection, if they could not keep up with her, let alone find her?
    Yasimina picked up the lecture where she had left off, using the nymph’s drawing to illustrate the correlation between each of the known realms.   Fyrsta was surrounded by Somnial’s Realm: the realm of dreams.   The veils were thin between the two realms and it was common for the inhabitants of Fyrsta to drift into Somnial’s domain while they slept.   All realms shared a foothold with the realm of dreams and all manner of creatures could be found there; so went the tale of Galvier Longstride, the wanderer whose feet never stopped moving.
    Circling Fyrsta like four faithful moons, were the realms of fire, water, wind, and earth: Firˇdum, Aegirˇdum, Aesirˇdum, and Golˇdum.   And from those four, stretched innumerable realms, fanning out like a giant web, each sharing a juncture with the next.
    The other apprentices could believe her, or not, she didn’t much care what they thought.   It was a necessary lesson that she had learned early on in her young life.   They could ask the Archlord when he got back, that was of course, if he returned.
    She sighed forlornly at the thought of Marsais, absently plucking at an ink stain on her skirt.   Her master had been gone nearly six months, time enough for her to turn sixteen.   It seemed a lifetime, because her world was brighter when Marsais was about.
    In the twelve years since Oenghus had brought her to the Isle, Marsais had become her closest friend, but then she didn’t have many, which made his absence even harder to bear, especially since he hadn’t bothered to say goodbye.
    According to Isek Beirnuckle, he woke up one morning and left.   No one knew where Marsais had gone, not even Oenghus, however, the Order wasn’t alarmed or inconvenienced by his sudden disappearance.   Apparently, Marsais disappeared every few years, leaving no word or indication of when he planned to return.   Isiilde missed him terribly and she bleakly wondered if he even remembered her, or worse, had he left because of something she had done?
    An invigorating breeze swept through the amphitheater, bringing the salt and sea to the old, musty stone.   Torches flickered unsteadily in their sconces, their fires wavering for a heart pounding moment, and then they rallied, hissing themselves back to life with renewed vigor.   The chill, ocean air swirled restlessly in its stone cage before discovering the path to freedom, whistling through the narrow windows whence it came.
    Isiilde’s eyes, as brilliant as an emerald flame, were drawn like a moth to the nearest torch.   The fire’s hypnotic dance soothed her like an old, intimate friend.   She longed to sing, coax the flames to life, until they knew no boundary, but for some reason Oenghus had forbade her from singing to her fire while she was in the Wise One’s fortress.
    The nymph would have to suffer through the day and wait until she returned to their cottage.   In the meantime, she let her imagination drift, dreaming of Firˇdum and its everlasting heat, a realm where the sky rained fire and the sun was rumored to dwell beneath the earth.   That, she thought, sounded like bliss, and if the secrets of the Gateways were ever rediscovered, she’d be the very first to step through.
    “Isiilde.”   Yasimina’s voice finally pulled her from the fire’s allure.   Isiilde blinked, glancing around in wonder.   The chamber was empty, save Yasimina and herself.   She had missed the entire lecture.
    “I meant to pay attention,” Isiilde hastened to explain before realizing that her