The Rivening

Dahrian Ways

Back in her small room, Connie fretted over how she and Peter could navigate their tricky situation and make their way to Arden, or somehow get word to him. Wishing desperately that she had some inkling of how things worked in Dahria.

She corralled her rampaging thoughts by focusing on what she knew. That the Ireland passage was still opened and it shouldn't be. That Fanik and another Dahrian, a woman, had been to Earthside and visited with Hastings, the mining mogul, Findley's benefactor. That James was working with them and developing a device to eliminate needing a signaler to transit a passage. That Grayson and Ainsley likely were involved as well.

And Rennish too. Having observed Fanik's deference to her, she was obviously a ringleader on the Dahrian side to keep the passage open – perhaps even the ringleader. But how many other Dahrians were involved? The whole community? All of Dahrian Ireland?

She and Peter would have to tread carefully. Rennish held the advantage and appeared to be a powerful and wily woman. Connie decided she'd go with giving the impression that she was a little ditzy and impulsive, and clued out of any knowledge of larger plans involving the passage. That wouldn't even be much of a stretch.

The following morning, Connie was barely awake before Rennish walked in with a breakfast tray. Connie was surprised to see a cup of something frothy that smelled mocha-like next to a pancake topped with a berry preserve.

''You're kidding me. That's not really a cappuccino, is it?"

"You really had no idea what to expect here, did you? Now, tell me, how are you feeling? You two almost didn't make it through the passage."

"I feel okay. I slept well. And this looks great," Connie gestured to the food tray.

"Didn't Arden explain anything about using the passage?"

Okay. It's show time, Connie thought. "Some, but because I had decided I wasn't going with him, I didn't pay a lot of attention. I remembered - stay connected with a rope and though the end seems far away, eventually you get out. We shuffled our way through." Connie shrugged.

"Shuffle? Oh no, you need to run into the passage so that you get close to the halfway point before you start – shuffling - as you say. And then attempting a passage mid-day. It's so dense, no wonder you barely made it. Your friend wouldn't have if you hadn't been tied together."

"I want to go see him again as soon as I'm finished eating."

"What is he to you? You don't look related. Is he your lover?"

"Oh my god, no. He's not my lover. We're friends. Good friends."

"Tell me, Connie. Why are you here?" Rennish's expression was gentle and piercing all at the same time.

"I'm guessing you know a little about me. You called me Arden's love child. I met him for the first time maybe a year ago. He had recently found out about me and because the plan was to close the passage in Toronto, he decided to come get me and bring me to Dahria. My mother is no longer alive."

"And you didn't want to go back with him?"

"Not right then. I'm not a very brave person. It felt like too much. And I really didn't know him."

"What changed?"

"Um, well, I started regretting not going."

"And you came to Ireland. I understand that you had signalled the passage many years ago. So, you thought you'd come use it?"

"Ah, not really. I thought you'd closed the passage. Though sometimes I don't get things right. It's all kind of a fluke." Connie rambled on. "Peter hasn't traveled much. We decided to go to Ireland since I kind of know Ireland. It was more of a whim to check out where I thought I had felt the passage. And then it was open, and it seemed like, well, maybe I should chance it."