While he took his last sip of tea, he kept watching the golden threads in front of him, waving in the air. He was trying to understand the extent of his ability. Even if his ability was limited to finding people, things, or places, he could benefit from it if he used it properly
'It's better than nothing,' he thought.
After all, he owed his life to this siuni.
Now first time he truly had a moment to think about his siuni. And in that time, he had indeed learned a few things about it.
First, the brightest thread showed the best and most direct path. It showed the simplest route. But he was still unsure about the faint threads. There were many of them. Even though he wasn't certain, he thought they might show longer, more indirect routes to the same destination. He would need to try following them later.
Second, although he hadn't actually seen it with his own eyes yet, he had a strong feeling about one thing: darkness meant danger. He would have the chance to test this tonight when he went after Paul Smith with Juan and his team.
Third, if he could clarify in his mind what he was looking for, he could find it—just like the tea shop. But why couldn't he find people? Perhaps it was because he didn't have a clear understanding of them. While sitting there, he tried to search for the people Juan was looking for. However, he couldn't imagine what they looked like or anything else about them since they were targets he didn't know. So, the effort was futile.
However, he could still track the elderly street vendor who had just passed by, even as the man moved further away. As long as Arsh had seen his face, golden threads remained.
Fourth, he could sense the distance to his target and whether it was moving. And lastly, he discovered that he could follow several people at the same time.
Five bright golden threads waved in front of Arsh, reaching out toward Juan and his teammates. He could sense that they hadn't moved a single step.
'Were they still asleep? Since they usually worked at night, did they sleep during the day?' he wondered, trying to figure out if his senses were correct.
After a while, he realized he was getting tired. It was difficult for him to maintain the golden threads for so long. Soon, the threads faded back into his hand and disappeared.
He paid for the tea and left the shop. It was time to meet Nesame. If he was lucky today, he could learn where Professor Millway had gone. But even if he couldn't, he wasn't afraid of losing him. Now, with his siuni, he would be able to track him wherever he was. He would never forget his face, so he was sure he would find him sooner or later.
When it got dark, he walked toward the port. He waited for a while at the place where he and Nesame had agreed to meet.
'Am I early?' he wondered.
But even after waiting for a long time, Nesame didn't show up. He had promised to help Juan tonight, and not wanting to waste any more time, he decided to go see Mirtam by himself. Soon, he found him in the exact same place as yesterday, playing games with a group of men.
He approached the man and greeted him.
"May Arianan's blessing be upon you."
"Ah… a young man. Where is Nesame?" Mirtam said, standing up and looking around to find him.
"I don't know. I waited, but he didn't come."
"Okay, okay… then let's talk."
Just like the previous evening, they left the tavern and went to a quiet spot outside.
"I asked my friends. And I guess the Professor you're talking about, along with the others with him, left four days ago."
That was the day before Arsh arrived in Thage.
"The final destination of the ship they took is Hals. It stops at two islands, Sorpa and Trepa. But I don't think they got off there. They're probably heading to Hals. It takes around three and a half days. They must have already arrived."
This was contrary to what Arsh had expected. As far as he knew, this city was actually a small fishing town not far from the capital, Tirsit. It hadn't even been among the possibilities he had considered. But now, at least, he had an idea of where he needed to go.
"Is there anything I can do for you in return?" Arsh asked Mirtam. Nesame had lost his friends, so Arsh felt it was okay to ask for help from him. But this man had no connection to Arsh or the people who had died in his village. He had no reason to help.
When Mirtam heard that he laughed.
"Young man, no... We Kurshans are just trying to survive in our own land. We have to help each other. I know what they did to you was difficult. The only thing I ask from you is to be careful… and to take your revenge, our revenge."
"Thank you," said Arsh. They stood in silence for a moment.
"But where is Nesame? That guy would never leave you alone like this," Mirtam asked, with a hint of worry in his voice.
"I'm not sure. Should I go look for him?"
"Go on, young man. He lives in the neighborhood behind the police station. You can go there and ask around; they'll show you his house... He is a man of his word. Even if he were busy, he would have sent word through someone. It's best you find out what happened."
…
After leaving the port area, Arsh tried to find Nesame. Once again, he used his siuni and followed the golden threads. It was actually kind of fun. Even though it wasn't showy like Juan's siuni, he could use it easily in daily life.
The golden thread led him to a fairly decent, quiet, and clean neighborhood. Arsh guessed that Symran officials and guards also probably lived in this area.
He found Nesame's house without any trouble, but when he reached the door, he heard the sound of a woman crying. It was obvious that something must have happened here. He slowly pushed the garden gate, which was already half open.
In the garden, Nesame and two other men were talking. The atmosphere heavy. Nesame looked pale. When he saw Arsh, his eyes flickered as if he had remembered something he'd forgotten.
"Arsh… how did you find me? Ah… I forgot I was supposed to meet you."
Arsh didn't care about it. That wasn't important. He had found Mirtam and spoken with him personally. So, it was fine.
"It's okay. What's going on here?"
"My child… my child is missing. We can't find him anywhere."
The moment he said that, his eyes filled with tears. But before Nesame could explain the details of what had happened, one of the men placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Stay here with your wife. We'll continue searching," he said.
After that, they left. Only Arsh and Nesame remained in the garden, listening to the screams and cries of the young woman coming from the house.
"Arsh, come… come inside."
Inside, the woman whose crying he had heard was sitting on a cushion on the floor, while two other women beside her were trying to calm her.
"How did this happen?" Arsh asked.
When my wife went to the bazaar to buy a few things, she took her eyes off him for just a second," Nesame said.
"And then he was gone… that's all we know. My child… he's only five."
Arsh could see the tears welling in Nesame's eyes; his voice trembled as he spoke.
A lost child… Arsh knew he could find him easily.
"Nesame, do you have a photo of your child?"
"Yes, yes, I do… wait."
He hurried to the room where his wife was crying and returned, holding a framed photo.
"We took this photo last month. It was expensive, but worth it. Look at him.. how he's smiling… my boy."
Arsh looked at the photo. The boy had a bright smile, and his face resembled his father's. He tried to memorize every detail.
"What's his name?"
"Sefir."
"Okay, I will look for him too." Arsh handed the frame back, but Nesame grabbed his arm.
"No, you don't know this area well. You might get lost too."
"Don't worry, I've already strolled through almost the entire nearby area. I won't get lost. And remember, as long as there's a sky above my head, I'll never be lost." He smiled, pointing a finger toward the sky.
It was a saying from the desert. It meant that he could always find his way by reading the stars and the position of the sun.
Nesame smiled too, though his eyes were still wet.
As soon as Arsh stepped out the door, he closed his eyes and focused on the child from the photo.
"Sefir… where is this child?"
When he opened his eyes, the golden threads appeared. But once again, a familiar darkness was around them. This time, however, there was something unsettling about the threads. He felt a sense of similarity. He wasn't sure if this feeling came from seeing the same darkness the night before. Arsh walked for a while, unable to name the feeling.
As he walked, a thought struck him.
'Could he have been kidnapped?'
It was a definite possibility. He shifted his focus to Paul Smith, the man in the photo Juan had shown him the night before.
That was when he realized what had been bothering him.
He let go of the threads and, once more, whispered into the air.
"Where is Juan?"
…
Juan was sitting at the table, eating the soup Arsh had made that morning.
"Not half bad. Should I hire him as a maid instead? He's more useful than you are," he told Ray, the youngest member of the team.
Just as Ray was about to snap back in anger, the front door burst open with a bang.
Two of them instantly hid and took up positions. But Arsh could see where Juan was, and he went straight toward him.
"Juan, I need your help!" he shouted at the men hiding behind the door.
"It was you? Don't scare us like that!... What's going on?" Juan asked in bewilderment.
"The man you're looking for… Nesame's child is missing. I think they kidnapped him. I tried to find where they are... They're in the same place, very close to each other."
Juan waited a moment. He couldn't understand everything the guy was saying, but he caught a couple of words. After listening for a while, he took a deep breath.
Turning to Ray, he said, "Call the others."
In just a minute, everyone had gathered in the kitchen. Arsh told them about Nesame's child and Paul Smith.
"So, what's the plan? If the child is there, as Arsh suspects, he's probably not the only one. There must be many other children there. Are we going to get them out?" asked Eliz.
Juan looked hesitant.
"For now, we observe. We can't make a decision without understanding the situation. Be prepared for anything."
Everyone nodded silently in agreement.