Sunkissed Feathers & Severed Ties

by Kellie Doherty

  “True,” Dylori replied, though her expression didn’t lighten.

  “I understand,” Misti said. “It’s easy to forget they’re people…or once were people when it’s us versus them.”

  “It is, and they are, but they’re also people who could burn my village to the ground just to spread fear to the other villages and to honor their goddess by using fire more readily.” Arias’ expression grew grim. “I’m glad we could help the travelers today.”

  “Me, too,” Misti said earnestly.

  If they hadn’t come along, the worshippers would have murdered the troupe, taken their fill of the travelers’ supplies, burned the rest to ashes to honor their mythical goddess, and walked on. She was cruel in her determination to snuff out peace. Her whole being was bent toward building a fiery gray wasteland full of either devout followers or terrorized folk that she could toy with. Misti rolled her eyes. Or so says the storybooks.

  The knights had even run into scribes of Ponuriah, penning teachings and calling their books Lights. The knights had orders to destroy those books if found. Curious, Misti read one once, but it was full of rambling about how their goddess would return if only those loyal to her would make her domain whole again, make the living either dead and turned to ashes or worshipping her. That once she returned, Ponuriah would give her worshippers a new domain, a domain the Lights promised would be better for all people. It was such a ridiculous claim Misti had shredded the book soon after and scoffed at its teachings. It wouldn’t be better—it couldn’t, not with so much evil at the core. Who would believe that? It had always seemed to her like they used this worship to cover the immense evil in their souls.

  “That musician seemed very interested in you,” Arias said, pointing her skewer at Misti.

  Misti shrugged. “I told her about the pendant.”

  At that, Dylori frowned. “Was that a good idea?”

  “Why not? I thought she might know something.”

  “I get that.” Dylori scratched the base of her left horn. Nervous, again. “But it might be dangerous to spread that kind of talk around commonfolk. People might misconstrue your words and think you’re dangerous.”

  “I am dangerous.” Misti’s voice pitched higher. “The cage is holding, and while it does, we need all the help we can get, right?”

  “The pendant is dangerous,” Dylori replied, her frown deepening. “All we know is that it came from a banished Divus, and I don’t want you to put yourself in even more danger by telling the wrong person.”

  Before Misti could form a response, Arias spoke up. “She’s right. What if you tell the wrong person, and they capture you for research purposes? To gain more knowledge about…whatever this is.”

  “For research? That’s crazy.” Dylori arched an eyebrow. “I just meant some folk might think she should be stopped. Might lock her up and then we’d never get it off her. Might run her out of their village…or even try to kill her to keep others safe.”

  Arias nodded. “Well, yes, that too. But not all worshippers wear white robes, and if that pendant is as powerful as it seems, some folk might get curious, especially those who want to go into the sun goddess’ light. They might even want to make more pendants, in her honor.”

  Dylori rolled her eyes. “In her honor. Crazy sunbaked idiots.” She turned to Misti. “Either way, we shouldn’t risk it, okay?”

  Misti stared at the fire for a little bit before sighing. Dylori and Arias had a point. “Okay, I understand.”

  Giving Misti’s shoulder a light punch, Dylori grinned. “You’re already a walking death bomb, right? No need to add another layer of insanity that telling too many folk could lead to.”

  Oh great, walking death bomb stuck? Wonderful nickname. Misti shook her head, but the dark humor tugged at her lips. Dylori had an odd way of cheering her up, but somehow it always seemed to work.

  “Have you ever met a nice sun goddess worshipper?” Arias asked, munching on a piece of muol and staring at her thoughtfully. She glanced at Dylori, who went back to staring into the fire. It was clear she wasn’t going to answer.

  “Me?” Misti’s eyes widened. Her parents were kind, once. They had provided for her and loved her, or so she’d thought. “No. I haven’t.”

  Dylori scoffed and rubbed her face. “I haven’t either. A nice worshipper? That would be like enjoying being around suncreatures. You were right before, Arias, they deserve the tight cell.”

  “Do you think we’re right in locking them up?” Misti mused.

  “But the alternative is to kill them all instantly. That would mean we wouldn’t give them a trial under the Aluriahian Law. What if the guards or knights make a mistake and bring an innocent in to be killed?” Arias wiped some drippings off her chin with her sleeve.

  “Maybe killing them would actually make the worshippers, and maybe even the banished ones, stop doing such terrible things. They all seem to be waving the same banner anyway, even though not all banished are worshippers.” Dylori poked the fire, and embers flitted into the dark sky. Her comments didn’t surprise Misti, but her intensity did, almost as if she was trying to convince herself, too.

  “I doubt anything will help,” Arias muttered.

  They sat in silence for a while, each in their own thoughts. Zora curled her wings around herself and nestled in Misti’s lap, giving a content sigh as she did. Misti petted Zora, long strokes down her back and sides, running her fingers through the fur and feathers.

  “Why did you two become Moon Knights?” Arias asked, breaking the quiet that had settled over the camp.

  “I became one because I didn’t have any other plans and it seemed like an honorable profession to go into. The free room and board also helped,” Misti replied with a shrug. That truth, at least, she could say easily. She waited for Dylori’s response, but when it didn’t come, she nudged her friend.

  “What?” Dylori shook her head. “Oh, I became a Moon Knight to protect people, mostly. And to travel. I like adventures, too.”

  Arias nodded and handed Dylori an extra skewer, which she wolfed down. Dis settled down next to Dylori, snuffling around for more spiced leaves. They latched onto the topic of travel, and their conversation was flowing easily until Dylori stopped mid-sentence and snapped her head up, throwing the skewer to the side and drawing her sword. “There’s something coming from above.”

  Misti started to draw her dagger. “What? What is it?”

  “I don’t hear anything,” Arias said, squinting up into the pitch-black sky.

  “Well, I do,” Dylori muttered, staring into the darkness. Dis had raised his head as well and huffed into the black. Dylori could hear better than most, even without calling up her crafting. Another pang of jealousy coursed through Misti.

  But Misti could see better than anyone. She narrowed her eyes and the orange glow returned, sharpening the world around her. Something was certainly coming toward them. Something small and winged and familiar. Misti shook her head and eased out of her crafting.

  “It’s a vulnix,” she assured the others, and sure enough, a little black vulnix landed with a plop next to the fire. The male vulnix—Misti could tell by his smaller eyes and narrower wings—turned around and presented his back to Misti. A tightly wound case was tied there, its straps around his stomach carefully placed so as to not hinder the creature’s wings. Misti untied the top and retrieved the letter inside, petting the vulnix in thanks. The creature must have come from somewhere close by, for he breathed easily and his eyes were clear.

  “Who’s the letter from?” Dylori asked, slipping her sword back into its scabbard with a quiet hiss. Dis snuffled a greeting to the vulnix and settled down once more.

  Misti unrolled the letter. An ashy gray smudge blurred a little of it, but she recognized the handwriting in an instant—Char’s. Misti skimmed the letter quickly, heat creeping along her neck, acutely aware of the others watching her. It was short, shorter than the last, and it stated how bad their parents’ health had become and
how scared their brother was. She was surprised that it had come so fast after the first and how relaxed the black vulnix seemed to be even though the journey from Ruinswick was notoriously hard. Even now, he pranced back and forth, happy with himself for delivering the letter, seemingly full of energy.

  “It’s from my sister,” Misti said when she’d finished, lifting her gaze and tucking the letter away in her pocket.

  Arias leaned forward. “Anything good?”

  Misti hesitated, unsure of what to say. She didn’t know Arias well, and Dylori would wonder why Misti was hesitant to help them. Finally, she took a breath and said, “It’s an update from home. Nothing special.”

  “Be glad you get updates,” Dylori said, leaning back onto Dis and frowning a little. “Haven’t heard from my family in two cycles.”

  “I’m sure they’re okay. They’re probably busy,” Misti replied.

  Dylori sighed and stared at the night sky. Misti knew Dylori cherished each letter her family sent, but they didn’t send them as often as she would have liked. Misti had often envied Dylori’s bond with her family. Now, she didn’t know what to do about the bond with her sister, and a dark part of her realized she never wanted to hear from Char again. To sever that tie completely. But she knew that could never happen. Her sister asked for her aid and usually Misti could provide it. A cooking herb there, a few coins here. But she always asked for herself and for Danill, never had she asked for something on their parents’ behalf.

  Misti had a flitting thought of writing back to Char, of telling her of the pendant and the danger. It would be the perfect excuse not to help their parents. She was trying to save her own life. But she didn’t want her sister to worry, not on top of Danill’s outbursts and her parents’ illness. Char shouldn’t have to bear any more weight. Besides, she didn’t even know how to begin writing about something like this, and Dylori and Arias had just warned her against telling too many people anyway.

  “Lucky!” Arias said. “I haven’t heard from Orenda in a while. I miss her terribly.”

  “Lucky indeed,” Misti said, watching as the little black vulnix nipped a greeting to Zora and then disappeared once again into the night. But she didn’t feel lucky at all.

  Soon they had packed up and were off once more, heading off the road and over another rolling hill. Dis moved at a quicker pace, fearless in the night, and it was all Misti could do to hang on to both her seat and her gear. They went at this faster clip for a few hours and then settled into an easy, swaying walk that nearly put Misti to sleep, but Dylori had slumped forward and drifted off, so Misti made sure to stay awake. Suncreatures weren’t a threat at night, but that didn’t mean some other neades or other hulking creatures weren’t around. Beasts always protected their territory, and rightly so. Misti kept her eyes trained on the grasses, the rolling hills, the sky. Even in the darkness, she could see perfectly, thanks to her vulnix bloodline.

  Arias had also stayed awake, squinting. “Could we activate some daygems, maybe?”

  Misti glanced at her, a little shocked. She always forgot how other races couldn’t see in the dark, how reliant on the daygems they were. Is she afraid of the dark? Misti wondered. Not wanting to be rude, she nodded.

  “Of course.” She dug through the packs until her fingers brushed the daygems entwined in metal for ease of travel. She pulled one out and muttered the activation words that everyone knew, though no one remembered what they meant, and the daygem brightened a sphere of light all around them. For a heartbeat, sadness filled Misti because the darkness had burned away, but when she turned to sit sideways and face Arias, the smile on the dabbler’s face shooed the sadness away, reminding her that not everyone enjoyed the black as much as she did. If only we could dim the light. The sudden transition had hurt her eyes a little.

  “Better?” Misti hooked the daygem to their packs.

  Arias gave her a grateful smile. “Much. Thanks.”

  Quiet filled the air, broken only by the steady footfalls of Dis. Arias seemed content looking around at the grasslands, and Misti didn’t mind having the moment to her own thoughts. Her thoughts tended to stray to her family, and her hand went to the wings around her wrist, remembering Char’s tight grip on their final night before Misti ran away.

  Misti had told Char about them before she had left, grasping tight onto her hands, speaking in hushed whispers, sharing warm air between them. Misti had a clear image of Char that night—long blonde hair tangled at her shoulders, blue and yellow eyes wide with fear, nightgown stained down the front from when she dropped her cup of tea in shock. She had gripped Misti’s fingers so tight she thought they might break. Misti had left so much on her younger sister’s shoulders that every night it crushed her a little.

  She had almost gone back to her parents’ house so many times, but each time she had shied away from it. She had almost stayed when she met with her siblings three seasons ago. It was a trip that should have taken a crescent but had taken her two, gathering her courage every step of the way. Char had said she understood why Misti had to run. She had known what horrors their parents were inflicting, but she also knew she had had to stay. She understood everything, it seemed. Again and again, Misti wondered how she could’ve gotten so lucky to have a sister like Char.

  The quiet was beginning to bother her, so Misti broke it. “How often do you and Orenda speak?”

  Arias perked up, straightening in her seat. “As often as possible. She’s been quiet for a time, but I’m sure she’s doing okay. How often do you and your sister speak?”

  “Often enough. Though I think all this attention from home is making Dylori jealous.”

  Arias chuckled. “Yes, she did seem disappointed about that second letter. I gather she thought it would be for her?”

  “Probably.” Misti shook her head. “I hope she gets one soon. It’s been too long for her.”

  Arias gave her a curious look. “I hope so as well.”

  Misti placed her hand atop the daygem so the light spilled downward, easier on her eyes. “Thank you for helping with the fight before, by the way. I know it couldn’t have been easy for you.”

  “Why do you say that?” Arias tilted her head, her bushy black hair floating around her like a dark cloud. Her many earrings caught the light, glinting, but the rust-colored one in her left ear seemed to sparkle the most.

  “You seemed…” Misti didn’t want to come off rude, so she chose her next words carefully. “Apprehensive during that suncreature fight. I figured you hadn’t fought much before.”

  Arias chewed her lip. “I’m that transparent?”

  Misti shook her head. “Not at all, but when you’ve been in the Moon Knights as long as I have, you tend to notice these things.”

  “I like adventuring, but I don’t like the fighting part of it.” Arias gently touched the bow sitting in her lap. “I can use my weapons. I’d just…rather not.”

  Misti wondered if the sword had ever been used. She also wondered if the dabbler’s father minded if it hadn’t.

  Arias shook her head, shaking herself out of whatever place she had dipped into. “And being a Vagari, I bet you’d notice a lot more, too, since animals always see better than us, and your race entwines with the beasts of the world.” Arias grinned again.

  It seemed Arias was determined to have a sunny personality and Misti found that she was glad for it. After a fight like that and Dylori’s dark mood after, and with this pendant around her neck, it was nice to have someone lift their spirits.

  “Some beasts use other senses aside from sight, so the Vagari with those bloodlines wouldn’t see that well, even in the daylight.” Misti’s curiosity got the better of her. “Are you afraid of the dark?”

  Misti slapped her hand over her mouth. It wasn’t the politest thing to ask, since nearly everyone did their business during the night and was afraid of the creatures that walked during the day, but she really wanted to know.

  “Not afraid.” Arias stared out at the darkness bey
ond the daygem’s light, fingers brushing up against it and making shadows dance into the black. “More like apprehensive. I don’t enjoy not being able to see things.”

  “So it’s better in the daylight?” Misti asked dubiously.

  “Yes,” Arias replied, gaze drifting back to Misti.

  Surprise raced through Misti, tingling her skin. But respect blossomed in her, too. “Really? I’ve never met someone who’d admit that.”

  Arias shrugged. “You don’t seem to mind the light.”

  “I was trained not to,” Misti replied, but then the truth fell from her lips, “But honestly, I’ve always liked the sunlight.”

  “Interesting. I’m not saying that I’m not afraid. Only a fool would be unafraid in the daytime.” Arias shifted her weight a little bit to lean back on her palms, swaying with Dis’ movement. “But it’s easier to see what’s coming…scary or no…when you shine a light on it.”

  “I understand, but I still prefer the darkness. There are fewer things to actually scare you at night.” Misti gestured around. In all the time they had been traveling that night, nothing had even come close to Dis. Suncreatures and sun goddess worshippers walked in the day, wracked havoc during the light, and rumor had it they slept the darkness away.

  Arias looked around and laughed quietly. “True. How far can you see in the dark?”

  Misti had never calculated it before. “A very long way.”

  Arias held the daygem aloft. The light filtered onto the hill Dis currently climbed, landing on tall grasses and bright-pink flowers open to the night sky. “I’d wager it really helps in a battle. To see that far.”

  “Not really,” Misti confessed with a sigh. She scratched Zora’s ear, grateful her friend was with her once again. “Or not as much as you’d think.”

  Arias lowered the daygem and glanced at her bow. “The Moon Knights don’t have long-range weaponry?”