When her father had called the meeting to order, he gave Faruz the floor.
“I have some disturbing news from today’s trip to the enemy camp. I’m afraid someone has given all our secrets to the enemy.”
Ahren gasped, but the exclamations of the others covered the soft sound. Had he seen her, too?
Dalan stood and clenched his fists at his sides. “How is that possible? Who would’ve done such a thing?”
“You all remember our visitor from a few weeks back? The mayor who blamed Aibek for his removal from office?” Every head in the room nodded. “Well, I saw him in the camp today. He warned us that was his plan. Perhaps we should have taken him more seriously.”
“How much does he know?” Dalan asked quietly. “Do we have any secrets left?”
“I don’t know for sure how much he knows. He was in the meetings in Kainga. He was included in all the messages about the dragons and training. I think it’s best to assume he’s traded our strategic information for clemency with Helak’s forces.”
Stunned, Ahren sat, frozen. Could she be off the hook? As long as the others knew their plans had been leaked, did she really have to tell them about Tamyr? She bit the inside of her cheek and knotted her fingers in her lap. The beginnings of a plan dawned in her mind, but she sat quietly while the others discussed their options.
Several hours later, the council broke up and headed to their respective homes. Ahren bypassed the kitchen and went straight to her room. She didn’t think she’d be able to force any food past the anxious lump in her chest, anyway.
She mumbled incoherent thoughts and bits of plans as she paced her room, too restless to sit still. A soft knock at the door brought her back to the present.
Traitorous tears had broken loose and streamed down her cheeks, and Ahren swiped at them before she swung the door open. Her brother stood in the darkened hall, a worried expression on his pale features.
“Can I come in? I know there was something you wanted to say in the meeting, but you got overshadowed by Faruz’s news. Is everything all right? Do you know something more?”
Ahren heaved a sigh and opened the door wider, waving her brother into the room. She settled onto the chaise and let him have the high-backed chair by the window.
The silence stretched, a palpable, painful thing, until Ahren couldn’t take anymore. “I saw Tamyr in Helak’s camp. I…I caught her sneaking out of the village to see Kaskin before she disappeared, and I didn’t say anything because I hoped I was wrong, but I’m not, and now she’s told the enemy everything she knows, which is everything because I thought she was my friend and told her all our ideas.”
“Well,” Dalan stood and handed her a handkerchief, but turned to stare out the window instead of sitting back down. “I can’t claim to be surprised, exactly, but I am a bit shocked she would choose the enemy over her family. Why does she hate us so much?”
For a heartbeat, Ahren struggled with how much to reveal. Tamyr’s secrets were her own, weren’t they? Only, now they put the entire forest at risk. “I think Tamyr was more involved with Ahni than we ever knew. She blames Aibek and Faruz and the new council for Ahni’s death and swore to do anything to avenge her friend.”
“How long have you known this?”
Ahren sniffed and buried her face in the handkerchief. “I found out the day before Tamyr disappeared. I didn’t want to believe she’d really do something so awful.”
A hand settled on her shoulder, and the tears erupted from a trickle to a waterfall.
“I know she was your friend, but we have to tell the others all of this. They’re thinking we still have some tactical advantages, but if what you’re saying is true, then all our secrets now belong to our enemy. We need a new plan and quickly.”
Ahren nodded but didn’t stand.
“Do you want me to tell them? Or would you rather I let you do the talking?”
“Could you? I’m not sure I can.” Deep in her gut, Ahren knew she was taking the coward’s way out by letting her brother speak for her, but as long as the council knew the extent of the betrayal, she didn’t care.
22
Attack
From where he sat behind a prickly berry bush, Eddrick could see all the activity in the courtyard below, or lack thereof. The army hadn’t done anything of interest in days, and boredom made keeping watch more challenging with every passing hour. He’d become so distracted, Eddrick didn’t notice the officers in their brilliant yellow jackets when they strolled into the army’s midst. The unexpected flurry of activity -- of men running to the center of the clearing, forming ranks, grabbing weapons, donning helmets -- drew his eye back to the field.
Alarmed, he tugged at Kiri’s arm and drew her close to his side. She followed his gaze and watched the activity below. Her eyes reflected his own panic back at him.
Fear and urgency filled his voice when he spoke. “Go. Watch over Aibek. Help him if you can.”
Kiri nodded once and vanished. Eddrick felt her absence but ignored the emptiness and turned to watch the army. He made sure to avoid meeting Glesni’s disapproving gaze. In moments, they’d formed neat lines and rows and begun to file out of the city through the southern gate. He glanced back, ready to speak to Glesni, but the ancient spirit had vanished. Eddrick watched the courtyard until the first rows had vanished beyond the sparkling marble wall and flew to the elders to warn them that the battle was imminent. He landed on the hill above the ancient city, ready to run to the hall where the elders waited, but Glesni had beaten him there and waited with six of the paper-thin ancients.
“We have seen,” the tall one said before Eddrick could speak. “The battle is upon us. You must go and do what you can to make it a fair fight among the living. My best men and women will go with you.” He heaved a sigh and an odd look of longing passed over his faded features. “Once, I would have leapt at the chance to fight in such a grand battle. Alas, I must not. I am not strong enough anymore. Go. Be strong. Be brave. Be victorious.”
Before Eddrick could respond, or even react, the elders vanished from the hill, leaving Eddrick and Glesni alone. An eagle screeched overhead, breaking the tense quiet that had fallen. Moments later, spirits appeared one at a time at first, then in groups of two and three, then dozens at once, until the grassy hill was covered with a small army of spirits. None carried weapons — why would they? Their fight wasn’t with the living. Their mission would be to keep the enemy’s spirits out of the fight so their descendants could fight for rule of the land they all loved. Among the spirits, Eddrick spotted the most recent king of Azalin, who had been mercilessly killed when Helak took Xona a few months before. The shadow of his crown still pressed his hair down. Eddrick bowed low, straightened, and flew to the point of light that represented the enemy soldier he’d followed these past weeks.
There would be no more spying. No more sneaking around. No more secrets. No more training. It was time. Nervous flutters filled his gut, but Eddrick grinned. He was sick to death of skulking in shadows. He had always been a man of action. Now, it was time to fight.
* * *
The morning dawned cold and frosty, unusual for that part of the land. Aibek pulled Marah closer and snuggled deeper in the blankets. The softest gray-blue light shone through the shack’s window. Marah sighed and pressed her face into his chest, and Aibek pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. He loved her. He wouldn’t — couldn’t — tell her that, not yet anyway. But soon, the battle would be over, and he’d ask her to marry him. He wouldn’t ask until the war was won. He couldn’t give her the attention a new bride deserved until then.
A scream pierced the early-morning quiet, followed by the clang of steel. Aibek threw back the covers and dove for his armor. There wasn’t time to don it all, but he tossed his heavy, embroidered green zontrec breastplate on, followed it with his chainmail tunic, and smashed his helmet onto his head before he grabbed his sword and ran for the door. Behind him, Marah stumbled about, tossing clothing and corsets from her pac
k as she searched for her battle gear. He hoped she’d be close behind him but couldn’t wait to make sure. He closed the door behind him and froze.
Enemy soldiers ran through the camp. Dragons circled overhead, rumbling and chirping their displeasure, but unsure where or how to land to gather their riders. Men and women fought for their lives in various stages of dress.
Aibek signaled to the dragons to land. They could help their riders win the day. The dragon riders moved aside when the shadows grew, though most didn’t bother to look up. A few managed to position their opponents beneath the dragons’ great paws as the beasts landed at the mouth of the cave. The door to the shack flung open and Marah stepped up beside him. Her lips set in a firm line as she surveyed the scene, then she spotted her dragon and sprinted towards him. Aibek found Gworsad and did the same. He pulled the thin strap from the pocket on his belt and flung it over the dragon’s back and climbed up. Gworsad took off before he’d secured the straps, but Aibek had practiced enough to be able to fasten himself onto the dragon’s back in flight.
Below, several more dragons took to the air, their riders frantically working to strap themselves on. Gworsad circled, knowing that Aibek was the commander and needed to know what happened to his warriors. One by one, the dragons beat their wings against the cold winter air, lifting into the gray skies. Finally, the last dragon lifted off, its back still bare and empty. He screamed with fury and his sides swelled out with breath. A torrent of flame flew out of his mouth, filling the cave and igniting everything — and everyone — in his path. The enemy soldiers scattered, screaming, but few escaped without at least a portion of their clothing in flames.
Aibek’s mind circled much faster than the dragons could. The backup warriors were still at least a day and a half away. How had the enemy found their camp? Had they been betrayed? He hadn’t seen the old man that morning. Had he escaped? Had he shown the enemy where they were? A stab of guilt shot through his chest at the thought. Pagi had been nothing but kind and helpful since their paths had crossed. And the old man had helped them get rid of the enemy spirits that had been tracking them. No, Aibek wouldn’t believe that he’d done anything to hurt the Tsarians’ cause.
Then how? How had things gone so very wrong? More importantly, what did they do now? They couldn’t storm the gate. That would be the expected move, and they didn’t have the backup they needed for that scheme to succeed.
He leaned over Gworsad’s mossy neck and tapped the dragon’s shoulder. When an orange eye reflected his panicked features back to him, Aibek commanded, “Take us to the ground fighters. We have to make sure they haven’t been attacked.”
The dragon rumbled his acknowledgment and chirruped to the others. Moments later, they sped through the sky toward the spot the fighters had last been seen.
They had only flown for about twenty minutes before Aibek spotted them. They’d been ordered not to march as an army, but to look like a merchants’ caravan, and it seemed the guise had kept them safe. They moved north at a pace any real merchant would envy, with smart-looking horses pulling a few wagons. Weapons? Or food? Aibek wasn’t sure what the wagons carried, but they completed the ‘merchant caravan’ look, and so he wouldn’t question it.
Instead of landing near the caravan, Aibek led the dragons in a wide arc, searching the area for any enemy troops that might be waiting to spring a trap. After several minutes of circling, he decided it was safe and landed several miles in front of the caravan, near where he thought they’d be by noon. They stayed out of sight of the road, just in case he’d miscalculated and that wasn’t the warriors from the Tsari approaching.
Desperate and panicked, Aibek strode away from the dragons and riders over the next hill. He needed alone time to think and come up with a new plan of attack. The tall grasses swallowed him, and he closed his eyes and reached out his senses, as he’d learned to do in the forest.
Somewhere nearby, he felt a comforting presence. “Mother?” he whispered the word, unsure if he would alert nearby enemies with a louder call, as he’d done when fleeing the city guards.
Kiri’s slender form and brilliant red hair materialized a few feet from him, though she remained translucent.
“I’m not supposed to give you advice, but don’t wait for that caravan. You must attack now. They think they’ve driven you away. Your only hope is to attack while they celebrate.”
His mother rushed to Aibek and squeezed him in a hug of icy wind. She released him and vanished as suddenly as she’d appeared.
Loneliness washed over him at her absence, but he decided to take her advice. Breathless from the encounter, he sprinted back to the other’s and relayed his message.
Confusion showed on every dragon rider’s face. Marah gave voice to all their questions.
“How do you know this? Who has that kind of knowledge about the enemy’s positions? Do you have spies we don’t know about?”
“I…” Aibek fidgeted, caught himself, and locked his hands behind his back in a military stance. He pulled his chin up and met her confused gaze with what he hoped was an air of confidence. “I have my ways. We need to attack while the enemy thinks we’re retreating. Otherwise, they’ll be expecting us, and we won’t have a chance.”
“It sounds like a good strategy to me. I’m in.” Vayna stepped up beside Aibek and mirrored his stance.
“I don’t know. How will we ever hold the wall without backup? There’s only twelve… I mean eleven of us. We lost Dorrel at the cave.”
Aibek nodded. “I know it sounds crazy. Let’s sit down and see if we can come up with a strategy, but we don’t have much time. They’ll know we’re rallying to attack, but we have to defeat them before they expect us.”
An hour later, they were no closer to a plan than they had been at the beginning.
“Enough of this.” Aibek stood and crossed his arms. “We need to attack now, or we’ll lose our opportunity. Can we send Dorrel’s dragon to alert the warriors so they can meet us at the city today? They’re not so very far away. They can make it if they hurry.”
“I can do that,” the dragon said, rumbling. “I think I could carry some of them to get them there faster, too.”
Aibek smiled at the enormous dragon. He was nearly double Gworsad’s size and could likely carry two dozen men at a time. “That’s a wonderful idea.”
Without another word, the dragon flew off toward the caravan.
“Are we ready, then? Let’s do this!” He met each person’s gaze, saw and acknowledged the fear he saw there, and hoped he wasn’t leading his friends to their deaths.
“Now hold on just a minute.” Bartel kept his head bowed over the stick he whittled down to a toothpick, but Aibek recognized his soft voice. “Isn’t the wall fortified with archers? They’d be able to bring down even a dragon in broad daylight.”
A chorus of worried agreement filled the makeshift camp.
“He may be onto something,” Vayna said. “It might be better to wait until nightfall, when we can fly over the walls and take the palace. You know they have most of their fighters on the walls and at the gates. We can bypass them all. It’ll be the easiest victory in the history of war!”
The others agreed, but Aibek was less certain. Still, he went along. He couldn’t think of any reason to attack the city in broad daylight besides his mother’s warning, especially since the morning sun had already burned away the fog that had shrouded the dawn.
“We’ve already lost the element of surprise we’ve been counting on.” Marah’s voice quivered, barely above a whisper. “Wouldn’t it be best to hide under cover of darkness, swoop in, and take the palace? You’ve said the castle itself isn’t well protected, and they rely on the walls to keep the king safe. If we wait, we can be over the walls and in the palace courtyard before the enemy can even raise an alarm.”
The chorus of agreements reached its loudest pitch yet.
“All right, then let’s have an easy, restful day so we’re ready for tonight.” Aibek relea
sed the dragons to hunt and find a good place to rest within earshot, and the dragon riders settled in to a lazy day. Marah took Gwynn with her to shoot a few rabbits for a meal, and Aibek strolled away over the nearest hill to try to calm his own anxieties. He stretched out his senses, searching for any sign of the Bokinna or her sister, but only silence answered his cry. Feelings of loneliness and abandonment made him want to weep, even without thinking of the loss of Dorrel in the morning’s attack. His mind turned to the adventures he’d shared with his new friend, and he wished he’d had more time to get to know the personable young man. A tight knot of grief joined the anxiety binding up his insides, and Aibek pushed all thoughts from his mind. He tried again to stretch his mind to reach the Bokinna or the Saethem, but only the soft buzz of insects and the whisper of the wind answered back.
His thoughts wandered back to the battle for Nivaka. It seemed so long ago, yet it had only been a year and a half. His parents and their ancestors had saved the day then, when his plan would have seen all the villagers slaughtered by Helak’s advancing force. He hoped this plan was better. His parents couldn’t help him this time. They hadn’t said as much, but somehow he knew they’d be busy elsewhere.
A lump grew in his throat, but he swallowed it down and took a deep breath. The time for worries and anxiety had passed. Now it was time for war.
* * *
The sky shone in shades of red and orange when the camp came to life again. Quiet anxiety turned to soft murmurs and then to excited talking. It was time. No more waiting. No more training. They were ready.
Aibek called the warriors together for a strategy meeting before they flew out. He’d spent the day reviewing the layout of the city and considering various plans of attack. He’d also fought against the waves of self-doubt that reminded him of his failure in the battle for Nivaka. This fight would be different. He knew his enemy. He knew the city. And he had dragons. Surely that counted for something.
The Nivaka Chronicles Boxed Set Page 81