Raybearer

The abiku approach Prince Dayo and explain that the ritual failed because the debt to the Underworld has not been fully paid. Tarisai realizes that Ye Eun did not enter the Breech as she was supposed to. When guards attempt to force the abiku back to the Underworld, chaos breaks out in Ebujo, with demons viciously attacking the citizens who gathered for the ceremony. Rather than protecting everyone equally, the guards and the common folk seek out fellow members of their homeland and work to save them first. Ye Eun understands that the abiku will only stop if she passes through the Breech, so she runs through the opening to the Underworld.

Half a year has passed since the tragic events at Ebujo, and the Prince’s Council have now taken up residence in the coastal palace of Yorua Keep. They must now study, train, and prepare for the day when they will become the Emperor’s Council of Eleven. All the young council members have been affected by the violence of the abiku attack, especially Dayo and Tarisai. Dayo has difficulty sleeping and even sleepwalks away from his bed sometimes. On one of these evenings, Tarisai and Sanjeet follow Dayo and find him digging a hole on the beach in his sleep. As they wake him, he explains that he wants to dig a hole to the Underworld. Kirah escorts Dayo back to bed, and Sanjeet and Tarisai take their time returning to the sleeping pallets. Tarisai shares her thoughts about the treaty with the Underworld and the situation with the Redemptors, expressing her desire to change the treaty so that not all Redemptors come from Songland. Sanjeet does not believe that this level of change is possible. He states that most people believe that Tarisai and Dayo will eventually have a child together, especially given the strength of their friendship. Tarisai scoffs at this and tells Sanjeet that she does not think of Dayo that way at all. Sanjeet is pleased by this revelation.

Tarisai receives a visit from Thaddace, who is checking on her studies. As the High Lady Judge in training, Tarisai must choose a case on which to issue her first ruling. Tarisai wants to rule on a case involving a beggar named Bipo, who is bringing a complaint against the Imperial Council and accusing the person he believes is to blame for his station in life. He claims that because the laws and regulations of the empire caused him to be raised in a workhouse, he never received the help he needed to escape poverty. Tarisai tells Thaddace that she wants to rule in Bipo’s favor so that she can create a system that requires Aritsar to use its wealth to support less fortunate children. Thaddace cautions Tarisai, telling her that justice is less about fairness than it is about maintaining order. He recommends that Tarisai propose a system in which rich families take in orphans for one night to provide these children with a positive experience and to enhance the social standing of their families.

Thaddace also shares a recent decree with Tarisai and Dayo in the aftermath of the events at Ebujo. To promote greater “unity” among the realms of the empire, storytelling drums and written histories from these realms must all be surrendered to the empire. Those who surrender them will receive new imperial items in return. The decree also incentivizes families to choose Arit names for their children rather than realm-specific names, and they are also urged to forego the traditional clothing of their realms.

The young women of Dayo’s council are having their hair braided in preparation for the Nuina Eve Festival that evening. The festival is the only shared holiday of all four major religious sects; it celebrates the birth of humankind. Festivalgoers receive small symbolic tokens in their wine. A cowrie shell, in particular, represents a favor and may be traded in for a romantic gesture. The girls gossip about having romantic encounters with the boys on the council. Although members of the council are not allowed to engage in a romantic relationship with anyone but the emperor, it is common knowledge that many illicit trysts have occurred. Tarisai thinks fondly of Sanjeet. Later, Tarisai returns her scrolls to the study and accidentally spots Thaddace and Mbali having an intimate encounter. A servant almost discovers the two of them as well, but Tarisai loudly distracts him and sends him in the opposite direction.

The Nu’ina Eve festival is filled with dancing and revelry. Tarisai observes that the center of the circle of merriment contains a pit with hot coals. Festivalgoers may cross the single board spanning the pit to remove the curse from a bad token. The council members take turns receiving tokens from their gourds of honey wine. Tarisai receives a sunstone, which typically represents the power or “dominance” of the Arit emperor. Sanjeet receives a small skull token, which signifies death. He knows that this token is connected to his violent past, and he is resigned to the fact that others view him negatively. However, Tarisai decides to remove his curse by crossing the pit of coals. She is miraculously unharmed. With the ill fortune of his unlucky token now negated, Sanjeet is able to receive another one from the honey wine. He dips and drinks from his gourd several times until he finally finds a cowrie shell.

Sanjeet departs the festival grounds without a word. Dayo asks Tarisai to dance, and they demonstrate the strength of their connection to the rhythm of the music. Tarisai recognizes that she feels an inexplicable closeness to Dayo, but she cannot stop thinking about Sanjeet. She eventually slips away to find him. Tarisai says that she has come to claim the cowrie shell token. Sanjeet attaches the shell to an anklet that belonged to Amah and bestows this ornament on Tarisai. She attempts to give him the sunstone in return, but he refuses. Instead, he suggests trading for a kiss. The two kiss passionately and then attempt to return to the festival, but Tarisai is summoned by Thaddace and Mbali. They let her know that they realize she saw them in their romantic encounter, and they ask her to keep this knowledge secret from the emperor. While approaching the festival, Tarisai is struck by a sudden weariness and becomes slightly disoriented. She wanders outside the village and runs into a masked elder, who offers her a drink from a gourd. Upon drinking it, Tarisai regains all her forgotten memories of her history and her fate. The elder is her mother, The Lady, in disguise; she has given Tarisai a drink from Melu’s pool to remind Tarisai of the task that she must complete.

That evening, after all the other council members have fallen asleep, Tarisai wakes Dayo and leads him away from his sleeping pallet. (At this moment, she is not fully in control of her actions because her memories and her mission have been reawakened.) She leads Dayo to Enitawa’s Quiver, a secluded tree where many previous council members have made illicit love. Dayo is confused. He starts to tell Tarisai that he is not interested in sexual activity with anyone. Tarisai has an out-of-body experience and watches herself plunge a knife into Dayo’s side. She returns to her senses and panics, trying to keep Dayo alive. He tells her that it is a good thing that she missed his heart. Sanjeet happens upon them and forces Tarisai away from Dayo, calling her a monster. Tarisai is crushed. Kirah arrives and stabilizes Dayo with one of her songs. Tarisai admits that she tried to kill Dayo and explains her half-ehru parentage and her mother’s wish. Tarisai decides to return to Swana and find her father, Melu, so that she can find a way to prevent her mother’s wish from coming true. Kirah will stay behind to tend to Dayo and create a cover story, and Sanjeet will accompany Tarisai on her journey.