“It doesn’t hurt.”
“Did it ever?”
She nodded. “When we were on our Elani beat. I’d say midmorning. I don’t have a more accurate time, but you might ask Tiamaris or his Tower. Or Severn; we were on patrol.” She frowned. “You could also ask Teela to ask Andellen about the timing of the attack. It’s possible Nightshade made no attempt to reach out the normal way, as you put it, because he didn’t have time.”
“It doesn’t take a lot of time to speak through the namebond.”
No. It didn’t. Nightshade could have easily spoken through their bond—normally. It would make a lot more sense. “Could you maybe not pile on new things to consider when my plate is already full?”
“Maybe? It’s just something to think about. Before you ask, Serralyn asked. I’m just the bearer of bad news.”
Kaylin didn’t care for the bad news. “Helen—you can prevent the namebound from reaching out to me when I’m at home.”
“Yes, dear.”
“But that’s a choice you make, right? Is it something intrinsic to you being a sentient building, or is it something else?”
“Everything I do is intrinsic to my construction.”
“Is it something you think an Arcanist could duplicate?”
“I am uncertain.” That sounded a lot likeno. “But even if an Arcanist could duplicate the effect, it would take them some time.”
“Barrani have time, though.”
“They do. I can turn my shield on or off within my own boundaries, but as you are aware, a great deal of magic is involved in the creation of a sentient building. If this murder were planned perhaps a century ago—in your years—it is possible the same effect could be achieved.
“I highly doubt it could be achieved from within the fief of Nightshade.”
“It’s not the first time Arcanists—or worse—operated in the fief.”
“I do not believe those Arcanists intended to kill the fieflord.”
Kaylin grudgingly agreed. “I think the bulk of the fighting took place in the border zone between Tiamaris and Nightshade.”
“And the border zones are not under the strict influence of the Towers. I believe it was in the border zones that you first discovered the entrance to the Academia. It was because of the nature of those zones that the Academia was preserved, in a type of hibernation. There is power there—but it is a power buildings such as I were created to use.
“It was the Tower Bellusdeo rules that managed to broker the hibernation of the Academia. No one understands the function of, the existence of, the border zones; they are not strictly geographical. But you know that better than anyone currently conscious.”
Silence. “The portal paths between Hallionne might be like the border zone,” Mandoran finally said. “We lost contact when some of us were confined there.”
Helen nodded.
“But that makes no sense,” Kaylin said, frowning.
“No. Sorry.”
Kaylin exhaled and shook off sleep. She didn’t want more details about the Annarion-Sedarias conflict, just in case it started up again. “So where’s Teela?”
Mandoran grimaced. “We’re not entirely sure what Teela is up to now—but she’s been walking the border zone between fiefs. It’s not contiguous, at least not in her current form.”
Kaylin sucked in air.
“Terrano isnothelping. He’s giving Teela advice—and she’s the least flexible of all of us. She learns fast, and she can be submerged in the group chaos, but it’s much, much harder for her to pull out. Terrano thinks he understands what she’s trying to figure out, but Serralyn’s been grilling Killian, and she’s come up with questions Teela might be able to answer.
“Sedarias doesn’t want Terrano to join Teela. Neither does Teela. The reasons are a bit different, but Terrano flipped out—that’s the right term?” At Kaylin’s nod, he continued. “Sedarias asked Helen to ‘contain’ Terrano.”
Kaylin flinched.