"Never." Eluheed was offended that Kian could think so little of him. "My shamanic vows forbid it. I would never do that without their explicit consent."
"Vows to whom?"
"To Elu. I mean to my God."
Kian's eyes sharpened with interest. "Which god is that?"
"The god of my people." Eluheed held up a hand before Kian could press further. "I cannot say more, so please don't ask."
Kian frowned. "A secret cult?"
If only the guy knew how offensive it was for an Elucian to have his religion accused of being a cult. Their enemies' religion was a vicious cult of death. The Sitorians worshiped Elusitor, the dark side of Elu, but they had turned him into something he had never been. Elu's dark side represented judgment and the death part of the inevitable cycle of death and rebirth. The Sitorians had turned Elusitor into the deceiver and destroyer, a cruel death god that demanded constant blood sacrifices.
"My religion is not a cult. No one is forced to practice it, and people are free to choose which aspects of it are important to them. It's a religion that reveres truth above all."
Kian regarded him for a long moment before dipping his head. "I've offended you, and I apologize. I can see that your religion is very important to you. I've just never heard of it, so I assumed it was a cult."
"I understand," Eluheed said, without elaborating on his explanation. He couldn't say more about his religion without revealing he was not from Earth, and he still wasn't sure he trusted Kian with the information. "Would you like me to read you now?"
Once again, Kian regarded him with those intense eyes of his.
"I appreciate the offer," he finally said. "But I also have secrets that I need to protect. I can't let you into my mind."
Eluheed nodded. "I understand. I could say that I only see what you allow me to see, but that would not be the complete truth, and that goes against my religion. Sometimes I see more than I intend to, and more than the person wants me to see." He deduced that Areana had told Kian or Annani about the submarine escape plan and how they had known about it. "Lord Navuh summoned me frequently, for various readings, but mostly he was interested in discovering who was plotting against him. I've seen more than that. I predicted the rebellion that destroyed half the island, and I even received a hint about the harem flood, but as is the nature of visions, none were specific enough to act upon. The only one that was concrete, and that Navuh certainly hadn't meant for me to see, was his secret submarine. It was his last-resort escape plan, and no one other than him and Areana knew about it."
The silence that followed was longer this time, heavier. Eluheed could practically see the calculations running behind Kian's eyes. Risk versus reward, trust versus caution, the desire to know the future balanced against the fear of having his own secrets exposed.
"I appreciate your honesty," Kian said at last. "As well as your high moral standards. It's uncommon."
"Thank you." Eluheed let out a breath. "I believe that you are a male of your word as well, but I still need assurances. What I'm about to share with you is a secret that I vowed to keep, but that I'm forced to reveal in exchange for help because the alternative is to fail in my sacred duty."
"What assurances do you seek?" Kian asked.
Eluheed leveled his eyes on Kian's. "I need you to vow to the Fates, or whatever other higher power you believe in, that what I tell you will remain between us."
Kian leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. "That depends on what the revelation means for the clan. If it poses a risk, I will have to act on it. And acting on it means sharing the information with others."
"I understand." Eluheed had expected this response. "The information I have does not pose a risk to the clan, and it does not expose it to a threat that you will need to defend against."
Kian considered this for a long moment. Then he nodded. "I vow to keep everything you tell me in confidence, unless you grant me explicit permission to reveal specific items, to specific individuals, on a need-to-know basis, and once I hear you out, I will tell you who I think should be told, but it will be up to you to decide who can be told what, if at all."
The specificity of the vow suggested that Kian had taken vows of secrecy before and that he took them very seriously. It was reassuring. A quick promise of absolute confidence would have been worrisome. But Kian wasn't paying lip service to confidentiality. He was binding himself with precise terms, leaving no room for loopholes or convenient reinterpretations.
This was a trustworthy man who took his word seriously.
Eluheed allowed himself to relax a little and made his decision.
"Thank you." He inclined his head in respect. "I accept your vow."
33
KIAN
By the time Elias accepted his vow, Kian's curiosity had reached fever pitch, and he'd almost forgotten that he'd wanted to ask the guy about Navuh's enhancement program.
Perhaps it could wait for another time, though.
Elias was dead serious about whatever he was hiding. This didn't seem like some elaborate con or a delusional fantasy. The guy believed every word he was saying, and more importantly, he clearly had something significant at stake. People didn't demand such specific oaths of secrecy unless they had serious secrets worth protecting.
