by JD Monroe
In a thunderous chorus of flapping wings and clipped growls, the other dragons landed, letting their riders dismount. Marlena jumped down from Velati’s back, then offered a hand up to help Sohaila. Once Sohaila was on her feet, Marlena unhooked the wide strap from his neck and rolled it tight.
A few minutes later, the dragons had shifted back, with their partners offering clothing and shoulders to lean on while they caught their breath. They’d flown for hours straight, all of them with riders or heavy cargo. One of the female dragons frowned and pressed her hand to her chest. Sohaila approached and offered her hand. “Can I help?”
“No, Sister, I’m fine,” the woman said as she hastily tied a loose robe. Pain etched lines around her eyes. Her posture was off, like she was compensating for pain in her back.
“Thaleza,” her partner complained. She smacked the dragon woman’s shoulder lightly, then forced a smile at Sohaila. “Please do.”
Thaleza’s eyes flitted to Kaldir, who was already issuing orders. She straightened up with a grimace, tying her robe tight. “I told him I was fine.”
“Sohaila,” Velati called. She snapped to attention, turning to see him walking her way. “We’ll sweep the temple to ensure we don’t have any surprises, then we’ll eat and rest. After we’ve eaten, you will check on each of my soldiers and ensure they’re in peak condition. Understood?”
“Yes, kordari,” she said, nodding rapidly.
“Get all our cargo inside,” Velati ordered. “Just in case.”
Two hours later, the Scalebreaker dragons were ordered to bed like a pack of sleepy children. Several of the hybrid riders had been assigned to keep watch. As the soldiers prepared for bed, Sohaila made her rounds of the east wing.
Thaleza sat on the edge of her bed, twisting awkwardly like she was trying to pop her back. Her dark eyes rose as Sohaila entered the room. “Sister, I’m all right,” she said, straightening awkwardly.
Sohaila sat on the bed next to her. “I have my orders.”
“They didn’t want me coming,” she said, eyes downcast. “I got hurt taking Greenspire.”
“So you think the logical response is to forgo any extra healing and make it worse?” Sohaila said mildly. “That doesn’t make much sense.”
The other woman’s brow furrowed. “I don’t want them to send me back. I want to fight.”
“Let me have a look,” Sohaila said. She gently touched Thaleza’s shoulders. “May I?”
“Go ahead,” she said quietly.
She slid the loose robe down over the Kadirai woman’s broad shoulders to expose her back. Amidst the intricate blue tattooing over her shoulder blades was a partially-healed gash, surrounded by the sickly greenish-yellow of a week-old bruise. Resting her hands on either side of the wound, Sohaila opened her mind to the healer’s trance. Her searching tendrils of power found a painful knot of muscle and tendons that hadn’t fully healed.
“Blessed Mother, make me your conduit and pour through me,” she murmured as she released a stronger burst of power, focused on the injury. When she felt the energy smooth out, like a knot pried open, she let her energy drift through Thaleza’s body, invigorating her whole system. Then she patted Thaleza’s shoulder. “It’s not weakness if you need help. It doesn’t mean you’re not a good fighter. Even fine weapons need to be sharpened and repaired from time to time.”
She sighed and looked back. “Thank you, Sister. I do feel better.”
Continuing through the temple, Sohaila avoided Kaldir until she had seen everyone else. Perhaps he would fall asleep and spare her an uncomfortable exchange.
To her surprise, Velati Rimewing was already in bed, lying on his belly with a rough blanket pulled up to his waist. Though she certainly appreciated the sight of a beautiful Kadirai form, she was unfazed by naked men. As a dragon, she’d seen practically everyone she knew naked, and as a healer, she’d had her hands on more of them than she could count.
As soon as she entered the room, he murmured, “Right here,” and rubbed the back of his neck. She knelt next to him, placing her hands on his curiously cool skin. Intricate tattoos covered his bare back, intersected by new scar tissue. Her search found painful knots; muscles strained nearly to the point of injury in his back.
“I hope it wasn’t too hard to carry both of us here,” she said. She glanced over and noticed Marlena’s cloak draped over the wooden chair in the corner.
“Not at all,” he said with a chuckle. “We flew all day and night from Farath yesterday, and another full day today. It’s been a long time since I flew like that.” He groaned. Through the healing trance, she could feel his relief as warmth flooded his muscles, lapping back on her like gentle waves on the sand. “That’s good.” He turned to regard her with a cool blue gaze. “Conserve some of your energy. Be aware of how much you recover overnight, and make sure you’re eating and resting enough.”
“No offense, but I know how to take care of myself,” she said. “I’m over a hundred years old.”
His eyebrows lifted. “Remember my advice about following orders?”
“Yes,” she said, cheeks flushing. “Thank you for your advice.”
His eyes swept over her, but he didn’t press the issue. “I’m feeling much better now. Thank you, sister. Good night.”
“You’re welcome,” she murmured. She sighed. One last stop.
Except for a few murmured conversations, the temple was quiet. It was strange to walk freely through the familiar halls. Though she knew they were far away, her heart still thumped in anticipation of rounding a corner to find Adron or Firsa there.
Kaldir had been assigned to the room next to her former workshop. She pressed her ear to the door and listened. There was his slow, steady heartbeat. No other noise, except the even flow of his breathing. Maybe he was already asleep.
She contemplated heading to bed, but if Velati caught wind that she’d skipped Kaldir, he’d question her about it. Bracing herself, she knocked gently. A sharp intake of breath preceded his clipped reply. “Come in.”
Kaldir sat on the edge of the narrow bed, a loose cloth tied around his waist. A small lantern flickered from the wall, the low light casting his huge, muscular frame into sharp relief. He was as beautiful as he had always been. She had seen hundreds of naked men, but there was only one Kaldir. And while she could pretend he didn’t, he certainly had an effect on her.
“How are you feeling?” she asked, hoping the flush in her cheeks didn’t show above her veil.
“I’m well,” he said.
“Velati ordered me to check on everyone,” she said. He gestured to the bed, scooting over slightly to make room. Temptation drew her closer.
But instead of taking the offered seat, she stood in front of him and pressed her hands to his shoulders, sliding them up to his neck. His pulse raced beneath her touch, and she smelled the warm, spicy hint of arousal winding through his smoky aura.
“I just need to sleep,” he said. “You can save your energy.”
Faint traces of the Talons’ poison still lingered in his system, and she sent a pulse of power into him to burn it away. He gripped her wrists suddenly, and she startled. A warm, tingling sensation poured through her at the familiar touch.
“You don’t have to help me.” He raised his eyes, his gaze grabbing her. “Although it’s nice to feel your touch again.”
Her heart thumped. “You didn’t want me to come.”
“I didn’t want you to get hurt,” he replied. “It’s not the same thing.”
“What does it matter to you?”
He wrinkled his nose, like she’d said something idiotic. “What does it matter…I still care for you. That has never changed.” Slowly, he brought her hand to his lips and kissed it, turning it over to place his lips to her wrist, that strange place he had always loved to kiss her, saying he could feel her heartbeat best there. “I wish things were different.”
Possessed by the rising flame in her chest, Sohaila moved her hand to his cheek. As he
leaned into her touch, she was suddenly overwhelmed with the need to kiss him. He would let her.
And then what would happen?
As she leaned in, she could practically hear Velati’s disapproving voice. Is this going to be an issue? Instead, she brushed her thumb over Kaldir’s cheekbone and pulled away. She felt cold and disconnected without his touch. “Is there anything else you need?”
He shook his head sadly. “Just to rest,” he said. “Thank you, sister.”
The word sounded like a wrong note in a familiar tune. She shook her head. “Please don’t call me sister. I know things are strange between us, but it feels so wrong.”
“Very well,” he said. “Good night, Sohaila.”
As much as she had scolded him for calling her Falmina, she didn’t like hearing Sohaila on his lips, either. She wanted to hear him call her his beautiful comet again, as if nothing at all had changed between them.
“Sleep well,” she said, excusing herself before she let a foolish thought take shape into words.
She closed the door behind her, letting out a quiet sigh as she stepped into the silence of the hall. Walking silently from the opposite end was Marlena. She smiled and waved at Sohaila. “Sister,” she said quietly. “Did you eat enough at dinner? Velati said you have to stay healthy.”
She suppressed a groan. “Yes, I ate enough. Tell him I’m a century old, and I know how to feed myself.”
Marlena’s eyebrows arched. “You’re welcome to tell him that yourself,” she said. She joined Sohaila in her stroll. “Is this the place where you were held?”
She glanced over at the other woman, dread pooling in her belly. “Yes. How did you know?”
“Well, the name kind of gave it away,” she said gently. “But you look extremely uncomfortable. You have since we got here.”
She bowed her head. “My memories of this place are unpleasant.”
“Understandable,” Marlena said. “Would you chat with me for a little while? I’m keeping watch outside, but I’m alone and I’m sleepy. It’s been a long few days.”
“Of course,” Sohaila said. She followed Marlena through the main hall, and out the heavy wooden doors. It felt odd to walk freely through the doors which had been so closely guarded before. Even when she’d made her run for freedom, she’d bolted through the courtyard. Not once had she passed through these doors. It felt like spitting in Sidran’s face.
Marlena sat on the stone steps, staring up at the dark sky. The waning moon cast a silvery glow over the parched landscape. It was eerily silent outside, where the dead land stretched for endless miles. Her tattoos cast a faint glow, like the last embers of a dying fire. “I have to admit that I have ulterior motives. I wanted to ask you about Sidran.”
A chill ran down her spine. “You can ask, but I don’t know much.”
“Did he mention me? Ugh, I must sound like a jilted lover,” she said with a laugh. “I betrayed him. For a month, I could barely sleep for fear of retaliation.”
“He did mention you,” Sohaila said. “He didn’t say much, though. A few months ago, he arrived here with four new Aesdar, which was odd because we’d been told to expect at least five. He mentioned your name and said you’d turned your back on the faith. That you were cursed by Vystus, and he would kill you for it.”
Marlena flinched, still staring at the sky. “That sounds right,” she said. “I don’t know how I was fooled for so long. You must think I’m an idiot.”
“No,” Sohaila said. “I know how he manipulated the other Aesdar. He’s careful about who he shows his darker side.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, did he injure your face?” Then she threw up her hands. “I’m sorry, that’s not my business. Don’t answer that. I just hate him. Somehow, it makes it easier to think he did all these terrible things.”
“I don’t mind you asking,” Sohaila said. “He didn’t hurt me directly. His bodyguards did this to me because I tried to kill him.”
“Really?”
She nodded. “I almost pulled it off.” When Sidran had brought her a case of elixir to work with, she’d shattered a glass flask, grabbed the biggest shard she could find, and slashed his thigh open before he knew what had happened. Drawing on her warrior instinct, she’d spun around him, sliced his other leg open, then drove the bloody shard into his throat. She’d left him choking in a pool of his own blood and ran blindly and frantically as fast as she could go. She ran until her feet bled and she vomited from exertion. But they found her anyway. “I should have finished the job, but I just ran. The Talons chased me down and eventually found me, miles into the wasteland. They brought me back, and Adron started on my face.” Her voice trembled as the unwelcome memory resurfaced, the blinding pain, blood in her eye, in her mouth, dripping down her throat. Poison burning into her veins, blistering the raw flesh. “Adron was ready to start on the other side, and Sidran stopped him. Half dead, drenched in his own blood, and he spared me. He said he understood why I’d done it. After that, he healed my face.”
“He heals? Like you?”
“Nothing like me,” Sohaila said firmly. “Blood magic. It heals fast and ugly, as you can see. A few days later, he’d brought another Marashti healer here and told me if I didn’t do what he wanted, he’d hurt her instead.”
“Oh, no,” Marlena murmured.
“They broke three of her fingers and that was as much as I could stand,” Sohaila said. “He said it was to motivate me. That was his saying. Always to motivate. Before that, he’d tried to starve me out, saying hunger would motivate me. Two, three, four weeks without food, and he framed it like it was kindness, helping me to find my purpose. Clearing away the confusion that kept me from seeing the truth of Vystus, I believe was how he explained it.”
“He’s an excellent manipulator,” Marlena said. “I’m sorry you suffered all of that.” She sighed. “I wish I had seen sooner what he was. Up until the end, all I ever saw of him was this devout, kind person. He made me feel special. When he talked about making a better world, I believed him. I was an idiot.”
Sohaila shook her head. “No, you’re not. He’s very charming. And in his way, he is making a better world. For him and his followers, the world will be better without the Kadirai. He believes in what he’s doing, which is what makes him so dangerous.”
“Thanks for saying so,” she said. “It’s harder to absorb it, but it’s good to hear.” Marlena tilted her head. “You don’t seem nervous around me.”
“Should I be?”
“Everyone else is,” she said. She gestured back to toward the building. “The Scalebreakers have gotten used to me, but no one looks me in the eye for long. Except Velati, but that’s different.” A faint smile crossed her face. “You know we’re…together.”
Sohaila laughed. “Yes, I had gathered as much. For the others, it’s simple. Your power scares them. Our people have always been unmatched in power, and some of them don’t like that that’s changed.”
“No, I get that,” Marlena said. “I understand why they’re afraid. I’m just curious why you’re not.”
“Oh. I helped the other Aesdar while I was here,” Sohaila said. “Not one of them was ever unkind to me. Your power doesn’t make you a monster, and it doesn’t make you good or bad. You’re just who you are. And so far, you seem like someone I can trust.”
To her surprise, Marlena’s jaw dropped, eyes glistening slightly. “That means a lot to me.” She cleared her throat, surreptitiously wiping at her eyes. “I should let you get some rest.”
“In a few minutes,” Sohaila said. “I spent over a year here, mostly alone. I missed normal conversations. Once I got back to the temple, I didn’t feel like I could talk to anyone.”
“But you can talk to me?”
“I feel like I can,” she said. “I haven’t told anyone else about what happened. Is it too much?”
“No,” she said, giving Sohaila a shy smile. “I appreciate you telling me. You can talk to me anytime.”
“Thank you,” Sohaila said. It felt like she’d exhaled a long-held breath. There was still a heaviness in her chest. But it seemed easier to breathe now, knowing this terrible thing wasn’t buried quite as deep.
Marlena sighed. “You really should go to bed. I would hate to keep you up late.”
“You sound like your partner,” Sohaila said playfully.
The other woman glanced over her shoulder, then scowled a little, arching one eyebrow ever so slightly. When she spoke again, her clipped accent was a near perfect impersonation of Velati’s precise diction. “Sister, I respect your opinion, but I have no intention of acknowledging it. Go to bed.”
Sohaila laughed and gave her a snappy bow. “Indeed, kordari. Good night.”
The lands of Ifrahl were an endless expanse of harsh gray, marred by deep chasms and jagged rock formations. The Scalebreakers had left behind the deep green expanse of the Iveron, heading northwest over the war-torn lands that blighted the western part of the continent. The air felt thick and harsh, like it was filled with sand that scraped his throat.
Around noon, Kaldir spotted a large settlement of sprawling buildings around an imposing stone fortress. Golden flags whipped from its walls, while a dozen dragons spiraled lazily overhead. While they were still a few miles out, Velati flew ahead of the formation. From his back, Marlena sent up a small burst of white flame, then pointed east. The pale blue dragon banked east, giving the settlement a wide berth.
Kaldir followed his lead. The older dragon led the pack for several miles, eventually correcting their course west once again when they were well past the settlement. Once they were back on course, Velati rose, tilting his wings slightly, then dropped back into the formation in a gust of cold air.
Well before he was born, the lands of Ifrahl had been beautiful. His mother had told him of the rolling fields, striped by wildflowers in a thousand colors. But the final battles of the Great War had shattered Ifrahl, as the corrupt magic of the Raspolin leached into the ground like poison. Kaldir was unfamiliar with the lawless clans that survived in the broken wastelands. What little news they heard out of the untamed land was of bloody conflict and disarray. If Velati thought it wise to avoid the city, he would trust the other man’s word.