The most logical explanation was that the ancient inhabitants of Aurorys, including the early Elucians, hadn't adhered to the Precepts of Truth, allowing their imaginations to create a mythical afterlife that encouraged moral living.
At any rate, all these deep thoughts were best set aside for another time, and I needed to get back to the task at hand.
I forced a smile. "Let's get back to the refresher, shall we?"
Morek nodded. "I wonder what's taking Shovia so long."
"She has probably met someone at the caff shop and forgotten all about us." I opened one of my books and showedMorek a diagram. "This illustration shows the shifting magnetic fields, which create powerful and unpredictable electromagnetic currents in our atmosphere. Those currents can cause sudden and severe turbulence, which interferes with navigation systems. That's why sea voyage is limited to hugging the coasts, and Dolis remains a myth."
Our scientists had been trying to come up with navigation equipment that could compensate for the disturbances the way birds and dragons did, but so far, the attempts had been unsuccessful.
"If the dragons could fly across the Addolian Ocean, we would know if Dolis was real." Morek had a faraway look in his eyes. "I wonder who really lives there. Do you think they are human like us?"
"I don't know, but let's get back to the refresher. Dragons can sense and adapt to the electromagnetic currents that make mechanical flight impossible. Their scales contain trace amounts of magnetite, so we assume that it's also present in their brains, giving them the ability to detect and navigate the planet's shifting magnetic fields. But that's only a hypothesis since we can't examine them, not even the fallen ones. They won't let us near the remains."
"Elu forbid." Morek touched three fingers to his forehead. "That would be blasphemous. What about birds, though?"
"They stay close to the ground, so they operate more like hover-cars." I flipped to another page in my book and showed him the next illustration. "It's also assumed that dragon minds developed a natural resistance to the disorienting effects of the electromagnetic fluctuations."
When the door suddenly burst open, we both turned to see Shovia striding in, balancing three steaming cups of caff on a cardboard tray. "Sorry it took me so long. You wouldn't believethe line at the caff shop. But oh, my Elu, it was so worth the wait!"
I raised an eyebrow. "Let me guess, you've seen a hot guy?"
"Two." Shovia grinned. "I've seen two hot Elurians step out of a hover car in front of the Pilgrims' Lodge."
Morek's lips twisted in distaste. "Drakking foreign pilgrims."
Shovia ignored his derisive response and turned to me. "We have to go there tonight and hang out in the bar with them."
I rolled my eyes. "Did they invite you to join them?"
"No, but that's why I want to go there tonight, all dolled up and ready for conquest."
She was incorrigible.
"How do you know they will even be at the bar?" I asked.
"Where else would they be?" She put the tray with the caff cups on the desk. "It's not like there is anything else to do in Skywatcher's Point at night."
I shook my head. "The pilgrimage is in five days. We are supposed to purify our souls and minds in preparation. We shouldn't drink alcohol or stay up late." Or engage in the other activities that I was sure Shovia had in mind.
"Oh, don't be such a spoilsport, Kailin." She plopped down on a chair. "We have to go!"
"Did you see any Elurian ladies at the caff shop?" Morek asked, sounding hopeful and no longer upset about foreigners joining our pilgrimage.
As long as those foreigners were female, he had no problem with that.
"I didn't see any at the caff shop,” Shovia said. “But maybe some are staying at the lodge, and some might still arrive during the next day or two."
I doubted that. In the five years I'd been living in Skywatcher's Point, I hadn’t seen any Elurian pilgrims, male orfemale. In fact, I was surprised that two had made it this year, and I had to admit that I was curious about them.
Morek puffed out his chest. "On the slim chance of meeting a wealthy, Elurian beauty, I'm coming as well." He looked at me expectantly.
I sighed. "Fine, but I'm not staying late. I want to be in bed by nine."
Shovia squealed with delight. “I promise that you won't regret it! Now, let me tell you about these guys. One had these piercing green eyes that seemed to glow like a drakking aurora, and the other one..."
As Shovia launched into a detailed description of the men, I tuned her out.
