Read Branches of Time, The for Free Online

need to talk to you about and it's better that we don't waste any time.”
    And most importantly, Miril thought, with Bashinoir asleep, Lil can make her choices more freely.
     
    Miril and Lil sat at the table in the dining hall of the Temple. For the first time, after the tragic events of the last two days, they had finally prepared a real breakfast with the best of what the island had to offer. However, they ate as little as possible: who knew when Bashinoir would be awake and able to hunt. Over the next few days, they were bound to see their food supplies dwindle.
    As she ate, Lil's cheeks finally began to regain their color. Her black eyes moved from one dish to the next: she had never sat at a table laden with so many wonderful things to eat. The culinary customs of the people of the island were not even remotely similar to those of the priest class, which received the best of every kind of food, in quantities much larger than necessary for their needs.
    Miril let Lil eat peacefully, without disturbing her. When it seemed like she was full, she decided to bring up the subject that was weighing upon her: “Lil, my dear. There are just three of us left on this island. We have no idea what set off the inauspicious events of the day before yesterday, but we are alive and we have to make sure we do all we can to continue this existence in the best way possible.”
    Lil was surprised by how serious the priestess sounded, and she listened carefully to every word. The priestess' expression still seemed gentle. She felt like the priestess was finally going to disclose something important.
    “As you know,” Miril continued, “the priest has left us, unfortunately. If I had been the one officiating the wedding, he would have been spared. But that's not the way things went.” Miril seemed to be sincerely saddened by the death of the priest, although this meant she herself had been saved.
    “You may have noticed that the priest and I never left this Temple together. Energy balances are very important. Since our people first stepped foot on this island, the priestly class has always had the duty to protect all of its inhabitants. In order for that to work, there always need to be at least two priests. Both receive the same teachings, so that they can work in unison and in symbiosis in order to perform the necessary rituals. Most importantly, so they can perform the protection spells.”
    Lil had actually never thought about why there were two priests.
    “Do you know how a new priest is chosen?”
    Sure, of course . It was the highest honor for a family to have a child chosen for the priestly life. Not only would the infant's destiny be changed forever, but the position of the entire family would rise to the highest level of the island's hierarchy, and the head of the family would be admitted as a member of the council of Elders.
    “Of course. When a baby is born, the priests go to see it during the first few hours of its life and decide if it's going to become one of you.”
    Miril thought of how to make her explanations more accessible to the young woman. “You see, Lil, every child has their own energy current, an inherited trait and a predisposition that may be perfectly suited for the major powers and responsibilities that come along with the priestly life. Becoming a priest is not just a high honor, but first and foremost a heavy burden. The life of all of the inhabitants of this island depends on the protection provided by magic. If the priests fail, if they don't fulfill their duties, the consequences may be very harsh indeed.”
    So then it's their fault if... Lil started to wonder.
    Once again, it seemed as if Miril could read her thoughts: “Lil, I can assure you that neither I nor the priest were ever distracted from our duties. What happened can't in any way be connected to a failure on our part. There must be another cause and, one way or another, I'll figure it out.”
    Is that a desire for revenge in Miril's