by L. P. Dover
“Drastona?” Kye's voice said.
I fought harder.
“Give it a moment, Stone,” Lochlen's voice broke in. “I know you're there. All is well now. You are fine.”
I knew he was right. Even now, I could feel the pins and needles in my arms and legs, but the paralysis still had me panicked. If I could heal people, then would this happen every time I was near someone injured?
Lochlen seemed to read my mind. “It only happens the first time, Stone. Give it a moment.”
The pins and needles were becoming too much, and I tried moving my arm. It lifted. Something warm was suddenly against my hand.
I was touching someone.
I blinked.
My vision was blurry at first, but when it finally cleared, my eyes found three faces leaning over me. Kye, Maeve, and Lochlen. My hand was against Kye's semi-bare chest, and I dropped it, my cheeks burning.
I turned my head away. I was in a tent. It was larger than the one I usually slept in, and I was lying on a bedroll with my head on a straw-filled pillow. Maeve moved so that she stood in my line of vision.
“How do you feel?” she asked, kneeling next to me. When I didn't answer, her face fell. “I'm sorry, Drastona. I shouldn't have gotten angry with you.”
I shook my head. I wasn't upset, and I touched my mouth with my fingers to show her I wasn't able to talk. Relief flooded Maeve's face.
I tried sitting up, but quickly realized the lower portion of my body was still useless. Kye's face was next to Maeve's now. I wasn't sure how much time had lapsed since I'd placed my hands against his wound, but he was clean and wearing a pair of rough, brown trousers with a green tunic he'd left untied at the neck. It fell open halfway down his chest. A white bandage was just visible where the tunic finally closed. My eyes moved from Kye's open tunic to Lochlen.
Lochlen saw the question in my eyes, and he nodded at Kye.“Wounds that severe cannot be healed completely, but he will need no stitches.”
I lay there. I knew from seeing my palm on Kye's chest there was no more blood on my hands, but I could still feel it there against my skin, could still smell the stench of rot. That was what war was like. Blood, rot, death. Those were the scars I'd seen often in Kye's eyes, in the eyes of the other rebels. I'd lost Aigneis. I'd thought seeing her burn, hearing her scream was the worst thing I'd ever face. I was beginning to realize I might be wrong.
And Kye had said something about a room full of children.
I turned my head again, motioning at Kye, mimicking holding a sheet of paper before pretending to read it. Kye's eyes narrowed a moment before it dawned on him.
“You heard us talking then?” he asked as he pulled something from the waistband of his trousers. It was the proclamation he had been discussing with Lochlen and Maeve. I took it from him, scanning it quietly.
Kye was right. Raemon was blaming Sadeemia for Medeisia's current state of affairs. According to Raemon, King Freemont of Sadeemia was blocking the import of goods over the Medeisian border. It only got worse. According to the document, King Freemont was also the reason Raemon was being forced to exterminate all mages. Sadeemia, he accused, had schools to educate their mages, to teach them to kill with their magic, to disguise themselves so they could enter Medeisia and do away with its citizens. But it was the final line that caused my blood to run cold.
I, King Raemon Berhest VII, ruler of Medeisia and all of its provinces, do hereby declare a period of unrest with Sadeemia and its accompanying territories.
I stared. It was lies. All of it. But it wasn't hard to see the strategy in Raemon's plan. Most of Medeisia's citizens were powerless, illiterate, and famished. What better way to incite rage and save face than to blame Sadeemia for starving Medeisia's people, to claim that Freemont was the reason why Raemon was being forced to kill anyone born with magic in their blood.
My eyes moved to Kye's.
“T-the . . .” I struggled. My voice was hoarse, but it was working now. Kye leaned closer. “The children?” I finally managed.
Kye's face fell, and he looked away a moment before his gaze finally met mine again.
“Dead,” he said finally. “All of them.”
The paper I'd been holding fell from my grasp, the scrawled words illegible as it floated to the ground.
Chapter 22
Dead. All of them. Children. I couldn't shake the thought.
“Did you learn anything of import while you were gone?” I asked Kye.
Maeve had been summoned out of the tent not long after I'd read the proclamation and Lochlen had followed. There were soldiers in the forest, and some of the rebels had been sent out to lead them away from our camp. I wanted to go with them, to do something, but my legs still hurt. I could move them now, but not well enough to walk.
Ena had entered the tent when Maeve exited, and she sat now in the corner, her head down as she stitched a pair of leggings. A chaperone, I realized with surprise.
Lochlen slept near me every evening, and no one had ever bothered with a chaperone until now. But, then again, Lochlen wasn't a man.
Kye sat down next to me, one leg up, his arm resting across it. His jaw tightened as he pulled a loose strand of straw out of my pillow.
“Nothing more beyond what the proclamation reveals,” he muttered.
I thought of the parchment I'd read only moments before.
"It's evidence," I said. "Couldn't we take the proclamation to Sadeemia?"
Kye shook his head.
"It's not enough," Kye answered. "It blames Sadeemia for our problems and even claims unrest, but it doesn't declare war. It's not enough. We need something that shows Medeisia means Sadeemia harm."
One month in the camp had taught me I was such a small thing compared to the seasoned warriors here, and yet Lochlen and Kye both talked to me openly. If I asked a question, they answered it. Maybe it was the prophecy. Or maybe . . .
“I want to spy on the king,” I said.
Kye looked down at me, his face still. A month ago, he'd stood outside, the full moon behind him and told me I wasn't ready. And then he'd disappeared.
I pulled myself up on my elbows. It brought our faces closer, but I didn't turn away.
“Up until a month ago, I don't think I truly realized how bad it had gotten in Medeisia. And then … and then I lost Aigneis and was told I was a phoenix of peace,” I said, my gaze moving over his face, concentrating finally on the scar near his temple. “I can't be a phoenix of anything sitting inside this camp. I don't know anything about true fighting other than the lessons I've received from Maeve.” Kye knew I was right. I could see it in the way he lowered his head, his shoulders slumping.
Kye's chin had lifted, his lips beginning to part when someone stepped into the tent. It was the bowman from the forest, Brennus.
“Excuse me, sir,” the man said, his gaze moving between us before resting on Kye.
Kye stood. “Something wrong, Brennus?”
The man's head lowered. “It's the child, Nikalia.”
Darned clothes fell to the ground as Ena stood up abruptly. “Nikalia?” she asked, her face pale.
Kye moved around me, and I struggled to my feet. My legs were still weak, but they held.
Brennus nodded. “She is missing, she is. We think she followed Maeve's group into the forest.”
Ena gasped as Kye reached up and tied the ties on his tunic. “Bloody hell,” he murmured.
I took a step forward, breathing a sigh of relief when my legs cooperated. I felt stronger now. The weakness that remained felt more emotional than physical, although my legs still had a heavy feeling I wasn't used to. I ignored it, brushing past Kye until I stood in front of Brennus at the tent flap.
I gave Brennus a look, and he stepped aside.
“Where is she?” I asked the trees when I moved through the opening, the late afternoon sun making the forest appear more golden than green.
The trees swayed. “The king's men have the child.”
I fro
ze. No!
A hand landed on my shoulder. “What do they say, the trees?” Kye asked, his mouth near my ear.
I didn't look back at him. “Taken,” I breathed.
He swore again, and I fisted my hands.
“I could be the best spy here,” I pointed out. “The trees, the animals . . . I can see for miles, and I have ears in the smallest places. I know it. You know it.”
Kye didn't say anything for a moment. And then, “We'll need to do something about your appearance.”
I looked up at him. “What do you suggest?”
Kye touched my hair with one of his hands before suddenly pulling out some of the pins I kept in it. Ena had taught me how to plait my own hair, and I'd begun doing it often. Bright strands of highlighted brown curls began to fall around my shoulders.
Kye leaned over and deftly pulled a dagger out of his boot.
“I'm not sure you're going to like this,” he warned.
It suddenly occurred to me what he planned to do, and I let my gaze move to his face.
“Do it.”
Chapter 23
“This is a ridiculous idea!” Lochlen said.
The rebels had returned from the forest to find me with short hair and Kye showing me how to walk, talk, and stand like a boy. Nikalia was not with them.
Kye crossed his arms, his eyes on the dragon. “Then you talk her out of it,” Kye muttered. “She makes a good point, Lochlen. We bring her here, regale her with stories of her mother, with a document we believe proves she's a bearer of peace, and then we leave her here to sit out the rebellion in a camp.”
I looked at Lochlen expectantly. I knew what he was going to say, and I was prepared.
“Maybe you and my father believe she is the phoenix, but I'm not convinced. This is ridiculous,” Lochlen argued.
I fought not to scratch my chest where I'd used a length of cloth to tie down my breasts. Sadly, it hadn't taken much cloth. I had more hips than I did breasts.
“Maybe I'm not the One,” I broke in. “But I deserve to be as much a part of this fight as anyone. I've lost family, and my father is being used to help the king.”
Lochlen approached me.
“Do you really believe your father is being forced to do it, Stone. Because I can guarantee he isn't.”
My cheeks heated.
“What are you suggesting, dragon? That my father wants to help the king?”
Lochlen shrugged. “The possibility remains.”
I could feel my body tense, a headache forming as my heart beat faster. Lochlen was trying to rile me. I knew it, and yet I was still falling for it.
“Okay, say my father is helping the king,” I said. “Then I have even more reason to fight.”
Lochlen frowned. “And what help is a phoenix of peace if you die?”
I heard Ari's wings before I saw her as she flew down from the trees to land on a post nearby.
“Then she becomes a martyr. Let the girl fight, dragon,” the falcon said.
Lochlen turned on her.
“You say that with such ease, bird. Do you not know what losing her would do to the forest? You'd lose all human connection.”
“Wonderful,” Kye murmured. “And now the war goes to the birds.”
I grinned because I knew Kye was frustrated by his ignorance. Only Lochlen and I could understand the forest.
“We didn't have human connection before,” Ari stated, ignoring Kye. “I know the girl. I've been with her since I was barely a hatchling. She may appear meek, but she's as stubborn as a mule.”
Lochlen sulked, but he didn't argue. He turned to me instead. “You want to pass as a boy?” he asked, laughing. “A young boy at that.”
I nodded. “Let Raemon take me prisoner. I can prove I am invaluable to him.”
Maeve had been sitting quietly at the edge of the group, a sword in her hand, and she stood suddenly.
“What can you do the rest of us mages can't?” she asked.
I looked away from her because I didn't want to see the hurt my words would cause in her eyes.
“I can read, I can heal, I can write. And I can also read, write, and speak the same language as the Sadeemians. Even my father is unable to do all three.”
Maeve was quiet a moment. I knew from the tent earlier she was illiterate. “But the king has imprisoned the scribes. Any of them can do what you can,” she argued.
I shook my head. “No, they can't. Only Master Aedan could read and write the Sadeemian language. He was the master of our Archives, but he wasn't a mage. I am both mage and scribe.”
Kye leaned against a nearby tree. “The king will find her . . . er, him, interesting. Drastona is right. He will find someone with both skills invaluable. He will attempt to use her. Whether he'll allow her in the inner circle is arguable. But he won't kill her. He'll use her skills first.”
“And you know this?” Maeve asked.
Kye looked at her, his eyes shadowed. “I've been fighting in the king's army for two years. I know this.” Maeve looked away.
Two years? Kye had been in the king's army for two years? Spying or actually fighting for the king?
“And what about you, Kye?” Maeve asked. “Will you go with her? Can you?”
She indicated the part of his tunic covering his bandage. Maeve had a point. Kye had turned on his men to try to rescue marked children. It was traitorous, but I knew what he was going to say next. We'd planned it well.
Kye pushed away from the tree.
“The king may be willing to forgive a soldier with such a valuable prisoner.”
Maeve gasped. “You! You plan to be the one to take her prisoner!”
Kye avoided Maeve's gaze. “It's worth the risk. We need to know what the king has planned.”
“And what if the king doesn't forgive you?” Maeve fumed. “Are you willing to risk your life on chance?”
The look Kye gave Maeve was dark. “Two years, Maeve. I've watched a lot of people die in two years.” Kye glanced briefly at me. “The girl is willing to risk her life on the idea the king may need her. I'm willing to risk he has the same need for trained soldiers. Especially now in a time of war.”
Maeve's gaze moved between us, her eyes full of emotion, before she turned and stomped away.
Lochlen cleared his throat. “So that's that then? You really want to go through with this?”
Neither Kye nor I answered him. Our silence was answer enough.
“So be it,” Lochlen muttered.
He followed in Maeve's wake, but he didn't stomp. He moved silently, each step measured, calculated, as if he was marching in a funeral procession. Ari mumbled something about silly human emotions and temperamental dragons before she took to the air, and I nodded at Oran where he stood partly concealed in the forest. The trees whispered.
I looked to Kye. I should thank him for backing me, for risking himself by escorting me to the king, but I didn't. I didn't thank him because it felt like he was doing it for absolution. For what, I wasn't sure. Aigneis maybe? Or maybe the lives he'd said he'd seen taken.
“How long have you been with the rebels?” I asked him.
Kye ran a hand along the back of his neck. His hair had gotten longer while he'd been away. It made him look wild, unkempt, his scars more dangerous.
“A little over a year,” he answered finally.
He'd been double-crossing the king for a long time. I looked over my shoulder, my eyes finding a frantic Ena being consoled by Maeve. The older woman had grown attached to the child, Nikalia. It was one of the reasons I wanted to go into Aireesi. Maybe Nikalia was still alive. Maybe she could be saved.
Maeve pointed at the cooking pots, helping Ena move toward them. I knew she was trying to find something to keep the older woman busy, distracted.
“She's in love with you, you know,” I said suddenly.
I looked at Kye, but he avoided my gaze.
“I know.”
It was all he said. I was more curious than I should be and I
persisted.
“You don't care for her?” I asked.
Kye's eyes did meet mine then, the green irises eerily old for his age.
“Maeve is in love with a hero, an idea. She sees me leading the rebels against the king,” he watched me closely, “but she hasn't seen me when I work for Raemon. She hasn't seen me turn my back on those in need because doing so gives me more time in the army, more time to spy.”
I knew what he left unsaid. I'd seen that Kye. I'd seen him watch a woman burned by mage-fire. I'd felt him hold me down while I was branded like a cow. I hated him for it in many ways, and I felt sorry for him in others. But I'd also seen Kye the rebel, and I respected him for what he did for the marked cause. And yet … that night in the forest. I shook my head.
Kye stepped toward me. “Are you willing to watch people die, innocent people, so you can save a country?” he asked. I knew by the way he searched my eyes he saw the turmoil there. “Because you will, Drastona. You will watch people die, and you won't be able to do anything to stop it. If you try to, you risk a whole country rather than a few people. We can't save them all.”
I could see the image his words portrayed in my head.
“That's callous!” I breathed.
Kye laughed, the sound harsh. “That's truth.”
He was in front of me now.
“If you think you can't do this, now is the time to step away. All you've lost is your hair. Going to Aireesi could mean losing your soul.”
I stared up at him, our eyes locked. I didn't look away even when the stare became uncomfortable because I read in his eyes what his words didn't say. I was going to die, if not physically then most certainly emotionally.
“Are you prepared for that, Drastona?” Kye whispered.
I leaned up, letting the tips of my toes bear my weight. It brought me closer to Kye's face. His eyes were dead in so many ways, alive in others. Tortured.
“Stone. You can call me Stone.”
Chapter 24
“Damn these trees,” Kye complained as he pushed his way through a mass of brambles.