Fire Falling (Air Awakens Series Book 2)

by Elise Kova

  The moment the doors to Imperial quarters closed behind him and his family, Aldrik increased his strides, doubling the distance between him and his father. Vhalla could feel his magic trembling and pulsing with an undeniable need—a need to get to her.

  “Aldrik,” the Emperor called.

  He froze, turning. His face was expressionless, but she could feel the tornado of emotion ripping through his chest. The sight of his father filled him with panic.

  “I need you in the war council; the North is getting too bold, and we will need to counter this aggression with force.”

  “I will be there shortly,” Aldrik replied stiffly.

  “You will come now.” The Emperor’s tone was casual enough, but something dangerous shone through his eyes.

  She could feel Aldrik gather his courage, a strange thing she never thought the man known as the Fire Lord would need to do. “Clearly the guard’s definition of care is lacking,” Aldrik’s voice dripped venom. “I plan to educate them.”

  “That is not your concern.” The Emperor waved the notion away, starting down a different hall.

  “It is.” Desperation flooded Aldrik’s chest and overflowed into hers. “I told you, she can win you your war. I am merely protecting our interests.”

  “Which is why I didn’t have the monster killed before she saw the light of day again.” The Emperor paused, glancing at his son. “The Empire’s interests, Aldrik?”

  “Always for the greater good of our Empire.” The words were rehearsed. They’d been said so many times they spewed from Aldrik’s mouth without thought, completely void of emotion. They were so hollow that Vhalla could sense the dam that trembled in the prince, holding back a plea of, let me go to her. “You do not want her to die, Father. I told you, I can train her, mold her—”

  “Right, right.” The Emperor turned to Baldair, who Vhalla had almost completely forgotten was there. “Baldair, fetch a cleric to tend to Aldrik’s pet.”

  “Father...” Baldair frowned.

  “Thank you.” The Emperor completely ignored the disapproving tones in his younger son’s voice.

  Aldrik continued to stand silently as the Emperor walked away. Vhalla felt his resignation. She knew his acceptance of a deeper truth that, despite all his wants, he couldn’t go to the woman he wished to be nearest to.

  “Baldair,” Aldrik whispered once the Emperor was just far enough away.

  “What do you want?” Vhalla felt a twinge of disappointment in Aldrik toward the disgust that laced Baldair’s words.

  “Go to her yourself,” Aldrik demanded.

  “What?”

  “Go to her yourself, damn it,” Aldrik hissed. “You owe me.”

  “I don’t owe you anything.” Baldair crossed his arms on his chest.

  “What happened to being the noble knight who proclaims protection of the weak and innocent?” Aldrik sneered. Vhalla felt his satisfaction when he saw Baldair’s expression change. The prince knew just what words to say to goad his brother in the direction he wanted. “You owe me for the last six Elixirs of the Moon I pilfered from the clerics without their noticing. Unless you’d like me to reconsider that arrangement.”

  “Fine, but not for you,” Baldair huffed. “For the girl.”

  “Fine.” Aldrik strode off, satisfied for the moment. His father was a few steps ahead and seemingly oblivious to the muffled exchange. Aldrik clenched and unclenched his fists.

  He damned everything he ever loved. How could he have even thought being near her could end well? How could he have let himself blur the lines with the girl so far?

  The questions radiated through Aldrik’s mind and into Vhalla’s consciousness as he stormed through the hall. A chair burst into flame by him, an outburst of emotion that couldn’t be tamed. Aldrik scowled at it and extinguished the fire.

  Vhalla woke shivering in the North with thoughts, pilfered from Aldrik’s dream consciousness. He had to get control. He couldn’t let them see. He couldn’t let them know what she was.

  THE SOLDIER SAID that “the pass” previously was the greatest river in the world. But it had long since dried up. It was hard for Serien to believe that the deep, rocky ravine could’ve ever held water.

  But somewhere across the chasm was Aldrik. The Emperor may have wanted to threaten her into submission, but all he did was give her a point in time to wait for. Another day, maybe two, and they would be across the pass; she would be with him once more. She would be careful, but she would tell him of his father’s threats, and somehow they would overcome them.

  Serien looked at the Emperor from the corners of her eyes. He wouldn’t get in their way, no matter how long and hard he tried. He couldn’t fathom what his son felt for her and what she felt for him. But someday he would see.

  It was halfway through the day when she first heard steel on steel and the sounds of combat echoing through the winds of the pass. Serien shivered, suddenly cold despite the jungle’s heat.

  Aldrik.

  She wanted to run, to sprint, her heart beginning to race with a wild beat. He needed her. He did. She just knew it. Vhalla could feel it through the Bond.

  Neither Vhalla nor Serien were prepared for the moment the troops rounded a curve in the pass. Fire burned the treetops as soldiers engaged on the opposite side of the pass. It was an all-out assault, and she was uselessly far. Vhalla searched frantically to try to find Aldrik among the chaos.

  The North, however, was taking no chances with what side their query would approach from, and the Imperial soldier’s shock was the ideal opportunity for a second surprise attack. Men and women, warriors in boiled leather, charged from the brush before them.

  The Emperor frantically tried to call out orders but they were too disorganized and flat-footed. The Northerners cut through the front of the ranks with ease. The Imperial soldiers tried to compose themselves, the second and third rows of men and women drawing their swords. But shock made them clumsy and the points of their blades chipped off their enemies’ magic stone skin.

  What was an organized unit was quickly devolving into chaos. Trained soldiers tried to call for the new recruits to hold the line, but the battlefield was already stained with blood that was turning men mad. The Emperor shouted from atop his mount, trying to reclaim order. The might of the North pressed upon them, determined otherwise.

  An odd calm had overtaken her. The bursts of flame across the ravine shone in her eyes, illuminating a deeper truth resonating within her. You are a symbol, Baldair’s words echoed through her subconscious. Vhalla’s fingers went to the belt strapping on her sword, dodging the first Northerner’s blade in the process.

  She would not meet these people in terror. If she was going to die, then she would die with dignity. Vhalla dashed backward and pulled off her gauntlets, feeling the wind beneath her fingers as they unlatched her plate. She would not die as Serien. If she was going to die, then she would die as the Windwalker.

  The Northerner who had been attacking her charged forward and Vhalla’s hand thrust forward to meet the woman. It was as if the wind had missed her commands and it responded in full force, knocking the woman off her feet and several other Northerners along with her. Vhalla swung another arm, sending the Northerners tumbling.

  “The Wind Demon!” one shrieked, pointing at her.

  Vhalla didn’t shrink away, she charged forward. The wind was under her feet, and Aldrik’s heartbeat in her ears. She drew from his strength. Together they would confront their foes. Together they would be invincible.

  She moved effortlessly around the blades as they came. They couldn’t touch the wind. Vhalla disarmed them with flicks of her wrists and waves of her fingers.

  It was the first time she had truly fought without fear. Every time before, even sparring, she had been afraid. Her power had been strange, then the Joining, then the fear of killing once more ... But she had learned how to shield her heart as Serien and she was a truly an agent of death now.

  She’d show the Emperor,
she’d show the world that they had finally gotten what they wanted in her.

  Vhalla lunged for one of the warriors, and her palm covered his mouth. It was how Aldrik had killed the Northerner on the Night of Fire and Wind. But, from her, there would not be flame. The air trapped within the man’s neck budged at her command. His eyes lolled in his head as it pressed outward, stretching the skin to its limit. The wind exploded free, taking strips of skin and hunks of meat with it, spraying blood over her face and arm.

  The man fell before her and there was an almost audible hush as everyone seemed to pause and stand in horror. Vhalla looked at the soldiers, her allies. Her eyes met the Emperor’s, who seemed equally stunned.

  “Fight with me!” she cried. They needed a leader, they needed a symbol that was more than a man in golden plate. They needed a Fire Lord. Or, a Wind Demon. “Fight with me!” Vhalla punctuated her statement by lunging for another Northerner, who exploded at her hand.

  Imperial soldiers sprang to life around her, heeding her wind, taking care to account for her movements. The Emperor wanted her to bring him victory. She would show him what it would cost.

  All else faded to the drumming in her ears. She gave herself to her Channel with the wind and to her Channel with her prince. She dodged faster than a person should be able to, she jumped farther, and she lost count of how many died by her hand.

  But she had never used her magic like this before—consciously—and Vhalla finally felt her power waver. What should have knocked back several soldiers only stumbled them. She paused, inspecting her hand, as if it had consciously betrayed her.

  A large flame from the other side of the chasm demanded her attention and, for the first time since the fighting broke out, she looked across to Aldrik. Everyone, even across the ravine, stumbled at the wave of heat. Vhalla took a step in his direction. There were more Northerners, a lot more, on the other side of the chasm. She wondered what happened to all the other soldiers. Aldrik seemed to have five on him at once.

  He was like poetry through fire. His body moved deftly, countering and parrying with flame. The fire swirled around him, and his dark armor seemed to be alive with it as Aldrik spun, commanding the blaze with his hands and thoughts.

  She threw a hand, the sight of him inspiring her power again. A soldier was knocked into the flames, and they blazed about him as her air and his fire mingled. Aldrik turned instinctually and his eyes found hers.

  His expression quickly turned to horror, and Vhalla felt the blade move through the air behind her. She dropped her shoulder and rose her hand, wondering if Aldrik saw the Northerner’s face explode. Vhalla turned back to check, and her heart began to race for a different reason entirely.

  He was being bested by two from either side. Aldrik dipped and swung, he dodged, but they were both clearly highly experienced combatants. Vhalla took a step forward. It was then she noticed four more had closed in, making a semi-circle around the prince and two Northerners. He was pinned against the edge of the ravine, occupied entirely by the two who dipped and dashed for any opening they saw.

  Vhalla saw as Aldrik was forced back another step. The others on the edge of the semi-circle moved their lips fervently.

  She took another step forward. Aldrik didn’t notice them. She had to tell him.

  Suddenly, the two soldiers jumped away, tumbling backwards. All six raised their fists in unison. Aldrik seemed too stunned to move. He barely was able to take a step as all the Northerners dropped their closed hands into the ground.

  A groan, a rumble, and the ground rippled under his feet.

  “No,” she breathed.

  Aldrik tried to run as the edge of the cliff cracked beneath him. He clamored, heavy in all his armor.

  “No!” Vhalla cried, sprinting forward, past the blood and gore in an attempt to reach him. The swords faded away, the cries of the soldiers. She only saw her prince, losing his footing as the first large rock slid down into the pass below.

  “No!” Vhalla screamed as she saw Aldrik tumble backwards.

  The next thirty seconds stretched into eternity. Vhalla ran blindly to her prince, thinking of nothing but getting to him. His feet finally left the ground as the whole of the cliff shook away before the half-circle of Groundbreakers. Aldrik was falling, plummeting among the loose earth to the ground far below.

  Her feet sped beneath her, carrying her away from the cries of the Imperial soldiers at her back. The wind was tangled around her ankles and caught beneath her heels. She had to get to him, she would save him. Vhalla leapt into the air, the wind at her back pushing her forward.

  Aldrik was opposite the wide mouth of what was once a great river. And yet, with an expel of her power she crossed to him, propelled on the air, tilting forward. His hair whipped around his face and his dark eyes locked with hers in shock.

  His lips formed a single word. “Vhalla,” he whispered into the rush of wind around his plummeting body. Vhalla stretched her hand forward, desperate. She would reach him. The ground was coming up fast, and Aldrik finally began to reach for her as well.

  His body tilted and twisted over the pockets of air she tried to create beneath him. There were too many unpredictable factors, she wasn’t strong enough, and she wasn’t skilled enough to stop a body like this. Panic propelled her to exhaust the last of her magic trying to slow him.

  His hand groped at the air. Vhalla extended her arm, she had to reach him. The tips of her fingers touched his and Vhalla felt her body magically beginning to slow, the wind refusing to harm her. Aldrik stared at her, and she saw an emotion completely consume him that she had never seen from him before: fear. Vhalla’s arm threatened to rip from her socket, his hand was so close. She almost had him, a moment more, a moment further, an ounce of energy that was not used to push the wind around her and him. The ground was relentless in its desire to violently meet their falling bodies, and she only had one last attempt before they were crushed upon it.

  Vhalla took her chance.

  She grasped the empty air, his fingers slipping past her bloody ones, and she screamed. The last thing Vhalla saw was the moment when Aldrik’s body met the ground, blood pooling instantly about his broken and lifeless form, before everything went black.

  COMING IN FEBRUARY 2016

  A woman awoken in air, a soldier forged by fire, a weapon risen from blood.

  Vhalla Yarl has made it to the warfront in the North. Forged by blood and fire, she has steeled her heart for the final battle of the Solaris Empire’s conquest. The choices before Vhalla are no longer servitude or freedom, they are servitude or death. The stakes have never been higher as the Emperor maintains his iron grip on her fate, holding everything Vhalla still has left to lose in the balance.

  MY COVER ARTIST, Merilliza Chan—I have to start with you, my dear, my “official fan art” creator. Your artwork for the Air Awakens covers continues to get better, time after time. The noises I made when seeing the final Fire Falling cover were inhuman. That armor? Aldrik’s face? It’s too beautiful. You inspire me to write better to make sure that the story I’m crafting lives up to the promises your artwork makes.

  My editor, Monica Wanat—where would I be without you? With way too many “he said/she said”, that’s where! I can’t tell you how many times I’d point excitedly at the screen and think, “Yes, yes! This is what I meant!” You’re right there in my head and really elevate my work to a level of polished professionalism that I couldn’t achieve without you. I know you’ve had a lot going on lately and I want you to know I have such a deep admiration for your perseverance.

  Katie—I hope you truly understand how influential you are to everything Air Awakens has become. If I didn’t have you to bounce ideas off and talk through things, I’m not sure what I’d do.

  My betas, Nick, Dani, and Jamie—your contributions, viewpoints, opinions, and counterpoints really help me craft such a tight story. Thank you for taking the time to work with me, challenge me, and deal with all the times I’m freaking out th
inking all the words are wrong.

  My sister, Meredith—I don’t think I can express exactly how important your excitement has been for me. It’s pulled me out of the monotony of writing and editing and reminded me to be excited about this process. To be proud of what I’ve accomplished and really enjoy the steps of this journey. No matter how near or far we may be physically, you’ll always be an essential piece to my life.

  My mentor, Michelle Madow, author of the Secret Diamond Sisters and the Transcend Time Saga—you are so talented and wonderful. You’ve helped me go from unorganized ideas to a “real author.” I’m so excited to read what you have coming out next! Thank you for including me in your world and giving me guidance.

  Rob and the Gatekeeper Press team—you all have been absolutely amazing. The work you’ve put in, all your help, your insights, professionalism, how available you’ve been to me, it’s an honor to work with you. You make things happen that I frankly could not on my own and I’m so glad I decided to work with you. I know I can be demanding at times, but I hope—I like to think—that we push each other to be better.

  My Street Team—thank you for helping promote, love, and breathe life into Air Awakens. I love talking with you all, and I’m so glad you’re with me on this journey. Each of you has done your part and more and I can only hope I continue to give you great stories to enjoy.

  Jeffkun—thank you for not only tolerating this path I’m on but supporting it. When most brides are freaking out about centerpieces, I was freaking out about publication deadlines, and you just rolled with it. I can’t do this thing called life without you.

  The AAAPodcast Community—I know half of you must be tired of hearing about my books by now, so it’s not lost on me how supportive you all continue to be.

  My parents, Madeline and Vince—for being my biggest, unquestioning cheerleaders and the two people I know I can always count on. I love you both.

  ELISE KOVA has always had a passion for storytelling. She wrote her first novella, a high-fantasy, in sixth grade. Over the years she’s honed her love of literature with everything from fantasy to romance, science fiction to mystery, and whatever else catches her eye.