by TJ Muir
“There is no such place,” Marrick said, siding with doubt.
“There is. That I can offer, that perhaps no one else can.”
Again the narrowed eyes.
Jedda nodded to the north, towards the Faenyr lands. “There. He cannot reach her there. And I could bring her.”
Marrick was staring at Jedda, measuring something.
“It’s where I’ve been, up until this week, when I came here to send a message.” As if to prove himself, Jedda bared his shoulder, showing his tattoo.
Marrick looked at it, blank.
“This was my clan welcome. I am Faenyr, at least in part. It is my birthright,” he said, not entirely sure it was truth. “She’d be safe.”
“The invitation will be taken under advisement.”
Jedda growled, stomped his foot, frustrated.
“Right now, she is safe. The family- those that know-- will not be well disposed to changing anything. But they may consider that as an option, should the need arise.”
“How will I know? How will I be able to get to her ‘if the need arose,’?” he asked, throwing Marrick’s words back at him.
“I will bring this to her father,” Marrick said. “But I am fairly sure I am speaking for his wishes.”
Jedda sighed, shoulders slumped, feeling defeated.
“And also note, I may not be able to make this flight again without drawing attention to myself. If I do, someone may suspect Diya has been found and follow.”
Jedda nodded. He knew Marrick would consider and protect the family, and Diya, and would be cautious with any moves he made. It would be a matter of honor, as a flier, not to put the family in jeopardy. Jedda couldn’t really argue with that. His desire to see her, to hold her and tell her how much she meant to him, was at war with his common sense that wanted to assure she stayed safe at all costs.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Despite all of his assurances to Marrick, Jedda was worried for his own safety. He rode the pony back down to the outskirts of town and tucked it into its corral, feeding it a handful of peppermints and giving it a pat on the nose. He was glad Gherant’s workshop was close to the Pindar road, as it put him nearer to the north quarter so he wouldn’t have to go through the central area of the city. He took down the note and wrote out a new one letting Gherant know he had borrowed the pony, and that he would be leaving for a while. No need to tell Gherant the truth.
Jedda skirted through a few side alleys, working his way north. He had a decent map in his head of what the city looked like. He shrank back into a doorway, spotting a dark haired man. It turned out to be no one. Jedda thought it might be a Beddo, but didn’t stay to find out. He missed Tatak Rhe. He knew all the secret ways to move around in that city, every rooftop, drainpipe and underground tunnel from before the place had even become Tatak Rhe. Here, he had to stick to alleys and side roads, and trust his luck.
The sun was sinking behind the western ridge by the time he came to the north road. He didn’t bother to follow the road, as it wound back and forth past the archives and the temple. He raced up narrow stairs that went directly north. He paused halfway, as the stairs opened into a cobblestoned terrace. It reminded him vaguely of the terraced gardens in Tatak Rhe, only in reverse. Everything around the plaza was green, and the terrace was stone. He caught the view looking out over Treyu, but he was more focused on making sure no one was following, and no one was lurking up ahead, as he raced up another flight of stone steps.
He paused at the top, bent over, catching his breath. At least he was in better shape than when he had first left Tatak Rhe. Living with the Faenyr had him stronger than he had ever been before. But there were a lot of stairs, and Jedda had been spending more time focused on magic than on riding horses and running around. After a few moments, he straightened up, scanning the area. All clear.
He resisted the urge to put his hood up. The light was fading, and he had to remind himself that he blended in here better than he had in Tatak Rhe. Here, he could move around, just one more golden-fair person. But there wasn’t a lot of traffic up in this area of the city- not at this hour. Places like the archives were busy during mid-day. Not in the evening. He walked along, casting glances over his shoulder. He stopped to adjust the lacing on his boots, but really used it as a chance to look around.
He turned onto the north road. He could see the top of the fountain that was the landmark for the area. He tried to look like he was going somewhere, rather than skulking around suspiciously. Then he stopped, momentarily frozen. He saw a shadow, someone tucked into a small alleyway on the side. It was a good vantage point for anyone who wanted to watch the road without being noticed. Jedda shifted his awareness slightly, looking to see what the colors told him. But the person was far enough back that Jedda could only confirm that yes, someone was there. He bent over, pretending to adjust the laces on his boots again. Then he stood up and glanced around as though he had expected to meet someone who wasn’t there. He sighed loudly and shrugged, before turning around to head back down the hill.
As he turned, something hit him on the shoulder. He jumped sideways, expecting an attack. But the road was empty. He looked back up the hill, but no one was there. The shadow in the alley stepped out slightly, just enough for Jedda to see him.
Kirrin.
Jedda sighed, relieved. He walked up the road casually, adjusting his jacket, as he looked ahead to be sure no one was lurking. Then he stepped backward into the alley where Kirrin was waiting.
“What are you doing here?” he asked. “I thought we agreed to meet at the apple grove?”
“We did. But someone was watching the road, just above the fork. I didn’t want to risk tipping them off.”
Jedda noted Kirrin had said someone, rather than either Kip or Duffy. That meant the two men were still out there, somewhere. Jedda wondered if Kirrin had taken care of ‘someone.’ He hoped not. Chances were it was some poor kid who was told to watch for an outsider who had welched on a bet or a business deal. Jedda didn’t want to see anyone getting killed.
“I circled through the woods to find Destryn and Kai. I sent them on ahead, to wait outside of the city. I didn’t realize I would be waiting so long.”
“Where is your horse? Or did you walk down?”
“Both horses, yours and mine, are with the others.”
“Won’t it look suspicious for two Faenyr to be leading a pair of horses out of the city at this hour?”
Kirrin shrugged. “Not much to be done about it. But, hopefully, it will just look like two Faenyr heading home.”
Jedda sighed. He hoped they hadn’t put Destryn and Kai into any danger. He was glad Kirrin had sent them on ahead. They walked up the lane, pausing where it opened into the plaza with the fountain at the center.
Jedda put his hand out, holding onto Kirrin’s arm. “Let me go first.”
Kirrin opened his mouth, about to protest. Jedda shook his head. "It’s an open area, and at this hour it’s pretty deserted. Which of the two of us is more likely to stand out? They haven’t even seen me yet, here in the city. You’re the one they will be watching for.”
“They haven’t seen you yet that you know,” Kirrin retorted.
Jedda gave a small shrug. “Fair point. But that doesn’t change the fact that I’m right. I’ll look like just any half-blood in a half-breed city. You? You’re the minority here, my friend.”
Kirrin grunted, but nodded his agreement.
Jedda wandered toward the fountain, looking around as though expecting someone. He walked around the low wall, following the arc of frozen children splashing in the water. He reached into a pocket and pulled out a coin. A silver penny. He held it for a moment, wondering what he should wish for. He decided on luck and safety. Two things they could use right about then.
He dropped the penny into the fountain, hoping some hungry kid would find it and use it to feed his family for a few weeks. Then he turned his head, looking down across the plaza. As he started to nod, he sp
otted two shadowy figures on horseback coming down the north road, and Kip and Duffy closing in from either side of the fountain.
They must have been following the other two, Jedda thought, as he shouted “Run,” hoping the others, and Kirrin would hear him.
Kirrin had heard. And he was running, straight for them. Kai and Destryn stopped just beyond the plaza, confusion written clear across their faces.
Good, Jedda thought. He had no idea how they were going to get away from Hak'kar's men, but the two Faenyr would only complicate things. Maybe they could get to the horses, and outrun them, he thought. But he only saw Ashai, not Kirrin’s horse.
Kip and Duffy were in action mode. This wasn’t going to be a ‘friendly chat and warning.’ Jedda didn’t know if Hak’kar wanted either of them alive. He was banking on Hak’kar’s anger and ego. The So’har would want to look Jedda in the eyes and have Jedda know he had been beaten.
If Kip and Duffy had orders to bring them back it might give them a slight advantage. If that was the case, it was a matter of broken bones, bruises, and blood, but nothing fatal.
Kip and Duffy closed in, long knives drawn. So much for an advantage. They were out for blood. He glanced at their colors and saw no sign of clashing emotions. They had steeled themselves to kill their friend.
Kip turn on Jedda as Duffy closed on Kirrin. Time seemed to slow to a crawl, and speed up at the blink of an eye, all at once. Jedda focused on the way Kip was holding the knife and the way he moved. He tried to remember what Kirrin had taught him about self-defense. If Kip got a hand on him, it was over. He was no match for the lean, sinewy strength he could see in the bigger man. He dodged sideways, and Kip reached out to grab him. Jedda kicked at the inside of Kip’s knee, making contact, and the man went down. Briefly. Kip spun around quickly, knife slashing at Jedda’s stomach. A narrow miss, as Jedda fell backward. He rolled as he landed, glad of all his emergency recoveries during qwatcha.
Jedda came back to his feet. He edged around the fountain, trying to keep Kip in sight while also looking for Kirrin. He had an advantage in speed over the bigger man now, as Kip was favoring his injured leg. But the ability to move faster didn't do much good when he had no weapon with which to defend himself.. And there was nothing in the plaza he could use as a weapon- no sticks, or pieces of pipe lying around. Treyu was much cleaner than Tatak Rhe, he fumed to himself.
He had Kirrin in his sights and tried to get closer to him. Kirrin had a knife of his own and was engaged close up with Duffy. Both men were smeared with blood, but Jedda couldn’t tell how badly hurt either of them might be. Neither one seemed affected.
Jedda decided the best way he could help Kirrin was by keeping Kip busy, as the other man had abandoned Jedda and was moving in behind Kirrin. Two against one, a quick finish, then the two thugs, no, Jedda corrected himself, trained assassins, could turn to him, unhurried.
He began the fire spell Gherant had taught him. The memory of Gherant’s story, lighting his brother’s shoes on fire, shaped and directed the spell. He had to distract one of the two.
What happened next happened so fast Jedda was never sure of the exact order of events. He saw Kai rushing down the road, waving his bow like a staff. He came up behind Kirrin, distracting both Kirrin and Duffy for a moment.
Duffy saw the open target and moved on Kai. Jedda knew Kai was defenseless. Damn the boy, why hadn’t he stayed out of it?
Sheer terror and adrenaline rushed through Jedda, bringing on a rush of magic like sometimes happened when he was having a bad dream. This was the first time it had ever happened when he was awake and in the middle of casting a spell. He cried out a warning, knowing he couldn’t control it.
Destryn jumped in, pushing Kai to safety as a giant white ball of flaming light erupted. The flash was complete and blinding.
Jedda threw his arm up to shield his face, squeezing his eyes tight against the glare. Several seconds went by before it had faded enough for him to dare try and look. What he saw, or rather what he didn't see, made his stomach plummet.
“Kirrin? Kirrin!" He stumbled forward. "Where are you? Kirrin!” Heart pounding, he approached the spot where the three men had been standing only seconds before.
No sign of Kirrin. No sign of Kip or Duffy. How was that possible? Where did they go? He scanned the area, walking in a circle around the fountain.
Kai and Destryn were sprawled out on the ground, no doubt thrown back by the blast. A low, moaning sound told him they were still alive. But where was Kirrin?
Jedda returned to the blast area, playing the events of the last few moments back in his mind. They had been right there. It made no sense for them to not be there now. No sense at all. Then he looked down at the ground and realized he was standing on a pile of scorched ashes that had once been Kirrin.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Jedda looked back and forth between Destryn and Kai. Destryn gazed warily back at him. Kai ducked. Jedda read fear and distrust on the boy's face.
“Magic. We teach is not a weapon. It is one of the most important rules in using it. It is not for causing harm. It disrupts the flows with violence.”
“I didn’t mean it. I didn’t mean for it to happen,” Jedda said. He was still in shock and kept looking back at where the fireball had exploded.
“And yet it happened,” Destryn said, holding his injured arm against his chest.
“I was trying to keep you safe,” Jedda said, getting angry now. “Why didn’t you stay out of it?”
“You knew these men?” Destryn asked, suddenly, changing the subject.
Jedda looked away, then back, meeting Destryn's gaze. He nodded. “Yes. In a way.” He ran a hand through his hair, wiped at his eyes. “I knew we were being followed. Those men, they were from Tatak Rhe.”
“They meant to do you harm,” Destryn said.
Jedda nodded. “Yes.”
Destryn moved, trying to make his arm more comfortable. Blood seeped between his fingers.
“Here. Let me help you. I can wrap it for you.”
Destryn shrank back slightly. Shook his head. “No. It is good. Healers in Treyene, over the border, will be able to tend it better. And look to Kai’s head wound.”
Jedda looked at Kai and didn’t see anything amiss. But then he shifted his awareness, which was very easy to do now. He could see Kai had some injury even though nothing was visible. A bump on the head maybe, or shock. Kai hadn’t said much since it happened, just hovered close to Destryn.
Jedda kept hoping to catch his eye- something. “Kai?”
Kai ducked his head, peering up at Jedda from hooded eyes. “Destryn will look after me.”
Jedda sighed. He tried to tell himself that Kai was just upset and shaken. Everything would be okay once they got back across the border. He would find a way to make it right with him, with both of them.
Destryn sighed, working at his shoulder. He shifted his weight and roused himself. Then reached down to help Kai to his feet. Holding his arm close, he checked Kai over from head to foot, making sure there were no injuries he had missed.
Jedda took a step back, sensing their distrust, and feeling the rejection.
Destryn looked back at Jedda.
Jedda sensed he wanted to say something, that he was struggling with some difficult decision.
“Yes, you’re right,” Jedda said, filling the silence. “We will all be better once we cross back and get to Treyene.”
Destryn tilted his head, lips pursed.
Then Jedda understood. Destryn wasn’t sure he wanted Jedda to stay with them.
Jedda felt his heart breaking. These were his friends. He would never hurt them.
Kirrin had been his friend, like a brother. And now Kirrin was dead.
This was what the elders meant. About choices and consequences. Every choice they made was based on what maintained balances and would continue to keep things in balance.
Should he have done nothing and let Kai get killed? Would Kirrin be dead either
way?
These were things he would never know now. He had chosen, willingly or not, a course of action. Those choices brought consequences. Hard consequences.
What was it they had tried to tell him? Their final advice had been that a river cannot flow backward. Or something like that.
He couldn't change what he had done. Couldn't erase the fear in the eyes of his friends. Couldn't bring Kirrin back. The knowledge brought a deep, wrenching pain to his heart worse than any physical injury could ever cause.
“I understand,” he said. “I get it now. What everyone was trying to tell me.”
Jedda looked around. The light was almost gone. He heard the soft whuff of horses nearby. He shouldn’t be surprised the Tajynal horses would seek their riders once the chaos had died down. But even the horses were loathe to come close to him.
He tore a strip off his shirt and handed it to Kai. “Use this to bind up his arm. It will make riding easier for him. Until you get back.”
Kai reached out and took the cloth, careful not to touch Jedda. Then started to wrap Destryn’s upper arm.
Unsure of what else to do, Jedda wandered back over to the scorched area. He stared at the three vague shapes in the growing darkness and tried to remember who had been standing where. He stepped carefully, moving to his left. Kirrin had moved here at the very last second before the blast took him. Jedda could almost see again the shocked but determined expression on his face. It was Kirrin who saved Kai and Destryn.
Jedda knelt down to sweep up the ashes, all that was left of his friend. He took off his torn shirt and wrapped the ashes up. The shirt was spotted with blood. He wondered whose it was. He didn’t know what he was doing, or why, acting in a kind of daze But it felt wrong to leave Kirrin behind, there, on the ground. Where people would walk over him without knowing how important a person he had been to Jedda.
He wrapped the shirt up carefully. He would put it in his pack. He remembered having his pack, forgot he must have dropped it by the fountain. Couldn’t remember where. He circled back until he saw the dark lump sitting on the ground near one of the splashing children.