by JA Andrews
Why were these men shouting out Mallon’s words?
The brown-robed man raised his hand in the air, shouting commands, and Sini caught a glimpse of a light blue trail of light from his hand.
The trail from a compulsion stone.
She hadn’t seen a compulsion stone since Lukas had created them to control the frost goblins and the dragon. And people.
“That man!” She pointed past Roan to the brown robed leader. “We need to get to him!”
Roan shook his head.
“Fine.” She ducked around the back of her horse and ran toward the trees. She heard Roan swear and follow. The leader, watching his men fight, spared Sini no more than a glance. She sprinted into the trees, ducking behind a large trunk.
“Grab him!” she told Roan who rushed up next to her. “Don’t kill him! I have questions.”
“Why do you have to be so reckless?” Roan shot her a furious glance. “Stay here!”
He crept forward, but the man whirled and pulled his own sword out, lunging toward Roan.
Sini rushed forward. “Don’t kill him!”
The brown robed man swung so wildly that Roan took a step back.
“Death to Keepers and the filth who protect them!” The man raised his sword to lunge forward.
His body snapped backward, and a knife appeared at his throat.
“Drop the sword.” Pest held the man by the hair, his blade pressed against the man’s neck. With a hiss of fury, the man obeyed.
“You have control here?” Roan demanded of Pest. At the man’s nod, Roan snapped off “Keep Sini safe,” and ran back toward the rest of the fighting.
“Hold him still.” Sini stepped closer to the man.
The brown-robed man glared at Sini as she approached. “Get away from the Keepers while you can, woman. They are a pestilence, a plague—”
“A disease?” She grabbed his arm, careful not to touch his hand. A silver ring sat on his first finger, set with a small, uncut aquamarine that left a long trail of blue light. It was a compulsion stone. Her stomach sank at the ramifications.
His eyes widened. “You know the truth?”
“I’ve read Mallon’s work.” She took a bracing breath and grabbed the ring. Before she could pull it off, a wave of anger and hatred rolled through her.
The man curled his hand into a fist and yanked it away from her. “Don’t touch that!”
“If she wants the ring”—Pest wrenched his head back further—“she gets the ring.”
The man drew in a sharp breath, and a trickle of blood seeped out from under Pest’s blade. Slowly the man opened his fingers and Sini, using the edge of her cloak to protect her skin, slid it off the man’s finger. Through the fabric, the influence of the ring dampened to a mild anger. She dropped it to the ground.
The man blinked and drew in a deep breath. Pest peered down at the bit of silver on the ground.
“Don’t touch that.” Sini said to Pest. She turned to the brown-robed man. “Are you the only one with a ring?” He nodded. “Call off your men before every one of them is killed.”
His eyes flickered to the men still fighting. They were untrained and wild. Only four still stood. In a strangled voice, he called for them to throw down their weapons.
As soon as the fighting stopped, Dalton rushed to where his brother had fallen.
“Watch this man,” Sini told Pest. “And no one touches that ring. It’s a compulsion stone, made to control your emotions. We don’t need anyone else deciding they hate Keepers.”
Pest gave her a nod and Sini ran out of the forest toward the twins. The sheep had scattered from the fight in fear, and most of the attackers lay on the ground, moaning. Sini cast out toward them. Her heart sank when she found two of them still and dark. The rest were injured or unconscious, but none as severely as the wounded Baron brother.
Goven lay on his side. The arrow sunk deep in his gut trembled with the man’s slow, ragged breaths. His brother Dalton knelt in front of him, his own breath coming in gasps, his hands clenching Goven’s sleeve. Roan stood over them, his face grim.
Sini knelt next to the wounded man and knew the truth immediately. It was too grievous a wound to heal. She’d seen too many like this with the Roven. The damage was just too much.
Dalton called his brother’s name, his voice frantic.
Sini’s mind rushed back to the Stronghold. What if one of the twins were succumbing faster to their illness than the other? What if right now one were watching the other die? Her heart clenched at the idea and she cast out at Goven. The damage was horrific, the amount of blood spilling out of him too much.
She pressed a fist to her mouth. She couldn’t walk away. “Get the arrow out.”
“No point,” Goven gasped.
“Get it out,” Sini snapped at Roan. “Before he loses any more blood.”
Roan reached for the arrow.
“Do not touch him,” Dalton warned.
“Trust her,” Roan said. “She can heal.” His look said this arrow was very different than a knife cut in the lees, but he snapped off the tail feathers of the arrow. Goven gave a cry of pain.
Dalton glared at Roan for a breath before grabbing Goven and holding him firmly. He gave Roan a quick nod.
“Sorry about this, Goven.” Roan gave a quick pull, and the arrow slid out with a sickening wet noise.
Goven’s eyes rolled back into his head and he slumped into unconsciousness. Sini set her hand on the slick warmth of the wound and reached up again for the sunfire. The sun hadn’t risen enough for her to see it, but its light danced on top of the nearby trees and she drew it down into herself, pouring it into the man’s body.
He was so weak his body was doing nothing at all to heal the wound. Blood seeped out his back. His gut had been pierced, and its contents spilled out, mixing with the blood. Sini pulled in more and more light, her head and chest and arms thrumming with it as she pushed it into him. Deep inside Goven, muscle and tissue drew back together.
She drew in more light, and the warmth of it grew inside her. For a moment she lost herself in the feel of it, in the current of it, the power of it. The light washed through her. And then it did more; it filled her, woke her. She breathed in, and the light spread. Her skin hummed as though it might burst with exhilaration. Everything in her grew weightless and clear and pure.
Goven shuddered beneath her hand, and her eyes flew open. She’d forgotten him. For a moment, she’d forgotten everything.
Chesavia’s words echoed in her mind. For one glorious moment I wanted to join the light.
Appalled at herself, Sini dragged her focus back to Goven, directing more of the light into his body. The sunfire in her veins calmed and rushed into him. She found and fixed one wound after another, pushing away thoughts of the light and focusing on her work. As much of the bile and filth as she could find she worked toward the open wound at the back of his body, but there was no way to get it all.
When she finally looked up, she found Dalton pushing aside his brother’s shirt and staring at the new, red scar just under his ribs. Goven’s breaths came shallow, but even. Blood dripped down Dalton’s arm from where he’d been grazed by an arrow himself. Gathering a little more sunfire, Sini reached over and set her hand on it. The wound was shallow and clean. After Goven’s wounds, it was effortless to knit Dalton back up.
Sini sat back and cut off the stream of vitalle from the sunlight, letting it dispel back into the air. Her body sank down, heavy and weak. She spread out her hands and a slight golden glow faded from her fingertips. Without the sunfire streaming through her, her head drooped forward, and her arms fell heavily onto her lap.
Chapter Eighteen
Dalton caught up one of her hands.
“How—?” His hand clenched hers so tightly that she winced, and he released her. “That wound was fatal.” His face was infused with a terrified sort of hope.
“It still might be.” The lack of light was almost painful, like something essential h
ad been taken from her. She rubbed her face, trying to banish the thought. “The arrow pierced his gut. I couldn’t clean it all. He’ll most likely get an infection. The wound on his back is still open so it can be cleaned.” The dimness inside of her felt tinged with hopelessness, and she took a deep breath. “I don’t know if it will be enough.”
“Thank you,” Dalton breathed, turning his attention back to his brother.
Her dismay at losing the light receded, and shock swelled in her at what she’d just done. She’d never healed anything remotely that severe. The sunfire—the only time she’d ever moved that much was in the Elder Grove, and she’d assumed that power was the grove’s, not hers.
The commotion of the others interrupted her thoughts, and she glanced over to where Pest still held the brown-robed man. There was still a compulsion stone to deal with.
A wave of exhaustion rolled over her, and she closed her eyes.
When she opened them, Will stood several paces away, staring at her. He opened his mouth, but after staring at her dumbly for a moment, closed it again. Kneeling next to Goven, Will looked at the scar on his stomach. “I had no idea you could heal something like that.”
Sini smiled weakly. “Neither did I.”
Will looked between her and Goven several times, his face a cross between awestruck and troubled. She had too many questions in her own mind to wait for him to formulate one. Roan had left her side at some point to help the others tie up the remaining attackers. Despite the shaking in her legs, she stood and walked over to them.
The leader sat tied to a tree trunk. Pest was next to him, his knife still out. The other men were tied hand and foot, watched over by Alaric.
Sini stopped by each attacker. None were badly hurt. She healed two deep cuts that required only a little sunfire, then turned toward the men’s leader.
“You shouldn’t be with these Keepers, woman.” He glared up at her, but there was less conviction in his voice than before. “They’re a powerful, dangerous lot.”
Will had followed her, but he cast a glance back at Goven. “You might be talking to the most powerful of us all.” Sini shifted uncomfortably at the words, but Alaric studied her and nodded.
Sini ignored them both. The silver ring shone bright against the dark earth, still laying where she’d dropped it. A misty blue cloud hovered around it. Sini nudged it with her toe. The aquamarine was roughly-cut, and the light within it was turbulent but strong. It wasn’t the worst cut gem she’d ever seen, but it was close. The sight of it tightened the knot in her gut. She forced the question out. “Who gave you this?”
The leader clamped his mouth shut.
“A friend, he says,” Will answered.
“Let me describe this friend.” She used a forked stick to pick up the ring. “He was in his mid-twenties, with light brown hair and beard, neither of which are probably braided any more. Brownish green eyes, narrow face. He had a limp, and he told you this ring did something useful.”
The man’s eyes flashed before he set his jaw stubbornly.
“This is troubling,” Will glanced at Alaric. “Have we had any indication that Lukas was here in the west?”
Alaric shook his head.
Sini sighed. “There aren’t many people who can make compulsion stones. I certainly can’t.” She glanced at Alaric. “Can you?”
He looked at the ring with distaste. “I’ve never tried.”
“I hate those things,” Will said.
“You would, Keeper.” The man spit on the ground. “That ring protects our flocks from a wastin’ disease. Give it back, or the death of all those animals, and the starvation of the people of Lorrendale will be on your heads.”
“It does not protect your flocks.” Sini sat in front of him and shoved the end of the stick into the ground until it held up the ring between them. “I’m Sini. What’s your name?”
He glared at her. “Patrek, and I’m well respected in these parts. Folks’ll be outraged when they hear you’ve tied me up.”
“I’m sure they would be. Which is why Lukas picked you. He knew you’d be able to influence others.” She nodded to the ring. “Do you feel different now that it’s off?”
“Aye,” he said, “but he said I would. Said it was the price of the magic. The flocks would be safe, but it would bring the evil into me. I had to fight the anger, but as long as I wore it, they’d be safe.”
“That’s a decent story,” Will admitted.
“How long have you been wearing it?” Sini asked.
“A fortnight, plus a little.”
“And where did you learn those things about the Keepers?”
“He knew it was the Keepers who’d sickened the flocks. Fifteen of our best ewes died in a week. He’s the one who stopped the sickness. Said he knew Keepers were going around weakening folks who didn’t live in the cities, trying to gain more power from themselves in Queenstown. Said there were lots o’ towns around the land that had realized the Keepers didn’t do nothin’ useful, and that it was making ‘em nervous.” He glared at Will. “Said we were lucky. In other towns it had been the children sickened, not just the animals.”
“Which other towns?” Alaric asked
Patrek shrugged. “Towns to the south, although he said the truth about you was spreading up the western border, too. We won’t just sit by and let you kill our flocks. And ye won’t come near our children.”
“None of what he told you was true,” Sini said.
“As soon as he gave me that ring, the sheep got better.”
“That’s because he was the one making them sick. He’s done it in the south as well.”
Patrek shook his head. “I don’t believe you.”
She shrugged. “I’ve helped him make these rings before. I assure you it has nothing to do with sheep. It’s just about controlling you. The words you were yelling about the Keepers? Those are quotes from Mallon.”
Patrek’s eyes darted from Sini to Will and Alaric.
“Lukas finds Mallon inspiring,” Will said. “He’s adopted Mallon’s plan of attacking Queensland around the edges, over and over, until she’s too weak to put up a fight. He hates Queensland, and he hates the Keepers. The more people he can get to hate us, the more divided he makes the country.”
Patrek scowled at him and Sini felt a pang at the bluntness of the description.
“Have you ever heard of the Keepers being evil? From anyone but Lukas?” Alaric asked.
Patrek held her gaze for a moment before shaking his head coldly. “But when we heard there were Keepers in Loammore, we couldn’t let you get this close without taken our revenge.”
“What’s the best way to destroy the ring?” Will asked her.
“They’re delicate. Too much vitalle splits the stone. Much to Lukas’s chagrin, I’m good at destroying them. But since I’m not interested in touching this one, they are also destroyed by fire.”
Patrek’s gaze flicked from her face to the ring. “The herd has to stay healthy, or we’ll all starve. Give it back to me.”
Sini blew out a breath. “Lukas is long gone, right?”
The man nodded.
“He won’t be back. And your sheep won’t sicken.” She dropped the ring onto a tuft of dry fall grass. Using her ring, she set it on fire, then piled on a few small sticks until she had a small blaze. The stone glowed blue for a few breaths until the fire grew hot enough. With a crisp snap, the stone cracked into three pieces and tumbled out of the ring.
Patrek gave a small gasp. Then he blinked and took a deep breath.
Talen soared through the edge of the trees and landed on Will’s outstretched arm. Will studied the little hawk for a moment. “Talen didn’t see any more people around here.”
“We’re going to let you go,” Alaric said. “Go back to Lorrendale. When your sheep stay healthy, you’ll know we were telling you the truth.”
Patrek watched them suspiciously. “You’re letting us go?”
“Of course,” Will said. “G
o tell all the other towns that you’ve met actual Keepers, that they aren’t bloodthirsty monsters, and that Lukas lied.”
“You’ll find rings like this on the leaders,” Sini said. “Throw them in a fire. Once the stone is broken”—she set the silver ring by Patrek’s leg—“the silver is perfectly safe.”
Dalton and Roan had managed to get Goven up onto his horse, and he sat slumped in the saddle. He was going to need more help I with that wound over the next few days, and Sini felt a little rush of excitement at the chance to use the sunfire again.
“We’re going back to Queenstown,” Roan said. “Goven can’t continue.”
“We have to get to the Greenwood,” Alaric disagreed. “If Goven and Dalton need to go back, they can. The rest of us are going on.”
“Goven’s better off with me,” Sini said. “He’ll need more help with that wound.”
“We stay with Sini,” Dalton said firmly.
“Then let’s stop wasting time.” Pest tucked the last of his knives back into his belt.
Alaric looked down at Patrek. “We can trust that you’ll leave us be? At least until you can prove our words?”
The man gave a reluctant nod. “But if the sheep sicken again, we will find you.”
Alaric untied the man’s bonds and he hurried to his friends. Sini mounted and followed the Barons. Pest lingered behind, giving Patrek a cold look while the others left.
Sini mulled over the sunfire as they rode away. Why had it been so strong? Had she just never tried to use that much before? Possibly nothing in the Stronghold had required so much. Healing the twins was simple, and it had been a while since she’d experimented with sunfire.
In the early days after the Elder Grove, when she’d first come to the Stronghold, she’d tried to channel that much sunfire again. She’d never managed anything even half that big. A thrill went through her at the idea that they were heading back to the Grove now.
Will and Alaric had been watching her thoughtfully, exchanging quiet conversations. To them it must have looked like nothing more than healing. They were probably impressed just by that, but they had no idea what the sunlight had been like, and she didn’t have the words, or the desire, to talk about it yet.