Cherished

by Christina Bauer

  “Leave me now

  The danger had ceased

  You may only return

  For the very same feast”

  The hungry ghosts vanished, but if Petra tried another mini-transport spell like that last one, they’d reappear and start feasting once more.

  There were no manacles on my wrists, but my body felt drained. Casting hungry ghosts was no easy thing to do. Still, I was far from giving up. I began pulling more power into my body, and since this was the Zelle Mountain, there was magick everywhere. Taking in the fresh energy felt like drinking a cool glass of water on a hot summer’s day. Delicious.

  Petra stalked closer. “You can’t cast a transportation spell, but perhaps you’ll be tempted to break through my cage and escape on foot.”

  I raised my hand. My bones glowed blue. “You wouldn’t be wrong.”

  “Think, Elea. It’s a long way to run down the mountainside. That’s tiresome enough, but you’ll be casting against me all the way. And if you do get free from me, where will you find a mage strong enough to transport you to Nyumbani? Be reasonable. I only ask for a minute to make my case properly. I’m afraid we’ve gotten into a deep misunderstanding.”

  My chest tightened with longing. How I wanted to believe this was all some simple mistake. Unfortunately, that wasn’t possible, and I couldn’t take any risks with Rowan’s life. I must return for his fight with Shujaa. Anything else was a distraction.

  “You broke my trust, Petra. That means you don’t get a chance to explain yourself. I’m leaving.”

  Petra raised her left arm again. More rings glowed with sapphire light. Her voice cut through the chill air. “Craniant!”

  The word made my insides twist with fear. I’d heard about the craniant—they were fearsome bone monsters—but I’d never actually seen one of them get cast. All of a sudden, being stuck in a cage felt like a very bad place to be.

  An entire sheet of snow undulated above my head. Great rumbles sounded as the packed ice started to splinter. The wall of snow burst, and out stepped a massive monster made of thousands of skulls. The thing took a humanoid shape with gangly limbs. A great club was held in its fist. The weapon was also formed from skulls.

  A craniant. This wasn’t good.

  The monster leaned back, making its long arms sway behind it. The creature opened its mouth and let out an ear-splitting roar.

  “Craniant,” called Petra. “Show my Novice some manners.”

  The monster crouched down beside my cage. Its head was as tall as my entire body, and all the skulls that made up its face chattered and twitched as it spoke. “Heed your Mother.”

  Petra stepped closer, stopping just outside the circle of bones that acted as my cage. A fresh ring glowed on her hand. She was ready to cast yet another spell.

  “Fine,” I said. “You win. I’m listening.” I didn’t hold out much hope for Petra to make any sense, but I did need some extra time to pull in more magick. Fighting a craniant would not be easy.

  “Will you be our Tsarina?” asked Petra.

  “No.”

  She shook her head. “Then there’s another way to end this madness. If you won’t become Tsarina, then you must give up your powers. Go where they mean nothing.”

  I stared at her, my features slack with shock. “You want me to join the Sire of Souls?”

  “Yes, leave this realm. That’s what you did to Viktor, didn’t you? Cross a gateway. If you enter in that manner, you won’t become a ghost. Imagine. You’ll be able to enjoy all the intellectual pursuits of the palace of the Sire of Souls. There will be nothing but quiet study for all eternity.”

  There were so many flaws with her plan, I didn’t know where to begin. I started with the most obvious. “It’s not that easy to cross over. Rowan helped me send Viktor away. Before that, we got a special spell for Oni and Yuri.”

  “How little you know. Viktor left behind totems. I’ve been able to acquire one that can help in this area. I can easily open the gateway to the Eternal Lands.”

  My eyes widened. “I know where you got those totems. You’re in league with Zoriah.”

  Petra blinked. “I’m sure I don’t understand what you mean.”

  “Viktor left some totem armor behind. Zoriah’s son Shujaa has been using it.” I didn’t add in that he’d been employing it to create golden warriors.

  “If I made a trade with Zoriah, then I did nothing wrong.”

  I knew Petra well enough to guess the kind of agreement she’d made. “You promised to keep me away from Rowan when the time came, and in return, you received this gateway totem to send me away if I wouldn’t become Tsarina.” My heart sank. “And then you cast a transport ring to drag me back when you wanted me.”

  “Those were last options,” said Petra. “Failsafe plans, as it were. Honestly, I don’t know how Rowan has lasted this long. Based on the power Shujaa is pulling out of him to create those warriors, Rowan should have been dead weeks ago.”

  A chill crept over my skin, and it had nothing to do with the weather. “You’ve gone mad.”

  Petra huffed out a frustrated breath. “What a child you are. As I told you, I have Seers now. I know many new things, and yes, that has opened my eyes. But that’s not important. All that matters is that I can help you to cross over to the Eternal Lands. Once you’re gone, a new Tsar or Tsarina can safely be named.”

  “Name one now, Petra. You have my blessing.”

  “Nonsense. Until you are gone, the Necromancers won’t follow another mage.” She waved her hand dismissively. “Let’s not pretend you want to be here. The Seers have told me that you’re done playing at being a farmer. Your choices are to become Tsarina…Or move on and let someone else lead us.”

  There was something wrong with her logic, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. “I could hide from you all.”

  “But not from your true nature as a Necromancer.” Petra stepped closer to my cage. “The Seers have shown me what happened to Viktor. He was powerful like you, but unable to control it. In the end, it drove him mad. You can’t be off on your own, causing trouble.”

  I set my hand on my throat. “I’m nothing like him.”

  “The Seers don’t think so. You’re choices are simple. You must stay here and become Tsarina or cross over into exile.”

  I hugged my elbows. Over the years, I’d learned a lot about the court of the Sire of Souls. It was a peaceful place with meditation, books, and learning…But no magick. That was only possible in the mortal realm. I closed my eyes and searched my soul.

  Did I want to give up my powers? It would mean leaving everything behind for a life of eternal tranquility.

  There would be no more battles.

  No more spells.

  And I’d never see Rowan again.

  From the deepest parts of me, the answer was instantly clear. No, I would never give up my magick. It was part of the fabric of my very soul, and its energy tied me to Rowan in ways that went beyond the mating band. Losing it was turning away from the most central part of myself.

  I locked gazes with Petra. “I don’t care what the Seers say. I am a Necromancer and a strong woman. I can handle this power. I won’t be Tsarina, and I won’t be sent off into exile. Do you have any other choices to offer?”

  Petra whispered the words to a fresh incantation. Smoke appeared around her left hand. A moment later, the enchanted manacles were in her fist. “You can stay here and wear these.”

  I rolled my eyes. “So, no additional choices.” Eye-rolling was a flagrant break with Necromancer ways, but at this point, I didn’t care. All I could focus on was what I had to do next.

  Looks like I’m breaking free and speed-casting my way down the mountain.

  Petra stepped back. “You’re as weak and emotional as a Caster.” She waved her arm, and the craniant rose to its full height and lifted it cudgel. The thing was about to attack.

  I’d been pulling in Necromancer power for some time. Now, I sent it rushing to my left
arm. A good shatter spell would take down that craniant. I started the incantation.

  “Power and light

  Bone and—”

  Petra raised her left hand and spoke two words. “Bone dart.” One of her rings flared with blue light. A hail of tiny white needles flew off her palm and straight at me.

  Bone darts.

  They’d paralyze me and put me to sleep.

  Suddenly, I had a much bigger problem than the craniant.

  I refocused my energy, switching my power from the shatter spell to an incantation for protection.

  “Shield my—”

  The first dart hit me before another word left my mouth. A dozen needle-like projectiles struck my torso. The magickal poison stopped me instantly. I curled over and fell into the snow as my visions began to blur.

  Petra stepped right up to the bars of my bone cage. “Don’t worry. When you wake up, I’ll have a visitor for you who will change everything. I can still convince you to become Tsarina.”

  My last act of consciousness was to growl my displeasure. It was another kind of emotional display that Necromancers loathed, and I couldn’t help the small sense of triumph as a muscle ticked along her jawline.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  When I woke up, I found myself deep inside the Zelle Cloister. There was no mistaking the energy signature – this was the place where I’d trained for so many years. The chamber was new to me, however. Like most of the Zelle, it was a small room that had been scooped out of the mountain. In fact, the rock wall above my cot still held scratch marks from where skeletal servants had originally dug out the room.

  I tried to move on my small wooden cot. Not happening. Heavy ropes bound me in place. Plus, someone had changed me from my Caster leathers into my Necromancer robes. For some reason, of all the things happening right now, that change of outfit bothered me the most.

  Petra sat on a tall wooden chair by my bedside. Beside her, a small wooden table held a single candle. It was the only illumination in the room.

  Petra leaned forward. “You’re awake. Are you feeling better? I had our healers cast spells on you to reverse the effects of the battle.” In other words, my needle marks were gone. I supposed she wanted a thank you.

  She wouldn’t get one.

  I was in no mood to chat with my old Mother Superior. Closing my eyes, I reached out for Necromancer power instead. Try I might, I found nothing. No magick. No energy. My skin turned slick with sweat. Not being able to access magick was trouble, pure and simple. Either I was very tired, or there were enchanted manacles on my wrists. Whoever had tied me to the bed had done so where I couldn’t see my torso easily. Curling up my body, I tried for a better look at my hands.

  Sure enough, a heavy loop of iron surrounded each of my wrists. Enchanted manacles. By the Sire. My powers were blocked. Even worse, the last time I removed these manacles, Rowan had to help me, and the whole process almost killed me.

  Petra’s features stayed still as a stone wall. “You should speak when you’re spoken to.”

  “How about this? Let me out of here.”

  Petra straightened her back. “You’ll be happy to know we received a message from Rowan. He understands that you’ve chosen to take your role as Tsarina and wishes you well.”

  I twisted under the coil of ropes. “You told him what?”

  Petra gave me the barest of shrugs. “Do you think this is easy for me? I’m the one who has to guide you into claiming your rightful role. One day, you’ll thank me.”

  “That won’t happen, I assure you.”

  “There’s much I haven’t told you.”

  “So you keep saying. Please, just stop all this and let me go.”

  Petra leaned back in her chair. I’d seen this movement before. It was what she did when she about to give me a lesson. “This is what you need to understand. For centuries, our people have been growing weaker. Necromancer magick is becoming too much for them. Many Necromancers stopped casting and simply let the power consume them. That’s why you were able to summon those hungry ghosts. There are countless more where they came from.”

  For years, there had been stories about the Necromancers growing weaker. I’d been happy on my farm, so I hadn’t really paid much attention one way or another. And when Viktor had killed off the last Tsar, I was more worried about my curse than anything. I certainly never wondered why one mage was able to take down the old Tsar.

  “That’s all the more reason to hate Viktor,” I said. “He used the weakened state of the Necromancers to take over. And it’s why you shouldn’t be using his totems.” I rattled my manacles for emphasis.

  “You may not believe this, but Viktor wasn’t always evil.”

  “You’re right, I don’t believe it.”

  “Use your mind and move past emotions, Elea. The fact is, Viktor was sent to our lands for a reason. He was supposed to strengthen the Necromancers, but he wouldn’t follow his destiny. Instead of helping us, he murdered the Tsar and began killing and draining his own kind. Now you have his same gifts and strength. That is nothing less than a boon from the gods. You must use that power to fulfill Viktor’s life path and rejuvenate our people.”

  I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Petra is delusional. “And the fact that I’m not agreeing to this plan means nothing to you?”

  “Not yet.”

  “Ah, that’s right. You expect some mystery visitor to change my mind.” Those were the last words Petra had said to me after her bone darts had knocked me unconscious.

  “I most certainly do.” Petra rose, picked up the candle, and strode across the room. The space was larger than I’d initially thought. As she neared the opposite side of the room, I could see four gleaming spikes has been set into the wall. The metal shone with a purple sheen. These were more of Viktor’s totems, and if they worked anything like what I’d seen with Shujaa, then they only needed a magickal source to get them activated.

  Petra set her palm flush against the rock wall under the gateway. She began whispering an incantation under her breath. The bones of her arm glowed blue. Power streamed out from her palm in four neat lines, one headed for each of the spikes. The metal glowed bright purple before a door-shaped hole appeared in the wall.

  My breath caught. Petra had said she could help me go live in the palace of the Sire of Souls. Had she just created a gateway to the Eternal Lands?

  I forced my breathing to slow. Stay calm, Elea. Think.

  My logical side pointed out a few facts. I’d been through situations like this before, and it had all been a matter of perspective. Take Rowan, for example. Everything had seemed horrible with him being engaged to Amelia. However, once I found out more, it all had made sense.

  My emotional side pointed out that Rowan hadn’t tied me down and blocked my powers with enchanted manacles in order to make his point.

  I had to admit, my emotional side was making more sense right now.

  A figure stepped up to stand in the darkened doorway. I blinked hard, not believing what I saw.

  It was Tristan.

  My one-time best friend appeared as when I’d last seen him. He was all pale skin, high cheekbones, and jet-black hair. He still wore his Necromancer robes, but now they were paired something I’d never seen before: a circlet of white gold atop his head. That could only mean one thing.

  Tristan hadn’t been human. Ever.

  I’d heard stories of the members of Oni and Yuri’s court. They were descendants from the dark days when gods mated with humans. The result was part human, part immortal.

  The small chamber took on a dreamlike haze as I realized one simple fact: Tristan had lied to me more than I’d known.

  He was a godling.

  Tristan stepped into the chamber. “Someone summoned me.” He squinted. “Elea, was it you? I wasn’t expecting it so soon.” He scanned the darkness but didn’t step any farther into the chamber.

  Petra stepped forward. “I’m the Mother Superior of the Zelle Cloister, an
d Elea is my charge. I brought you here to talk some sense—”

  There was no way I’d listen to this speech again. “She’s got me tied up over here, Tristan.”

  “What?” Tristan snapped his fingers, and a ball of blue light formed at the center of the ceiling. So Tristan could still do magick. I thought that was impossible once you crossed over.

  I shook my head. Tristan was a godling. They could do whatever they liked.

  Tristan spied me on the cot, and his handsome face drooped into a scowl. “Petra did that to you?”

  “Of course, I did,” offered Petra. “I had to. My Seers showed me what her life path is. She needs to follow it.”

  “Not like this.” Tristan snapped his fingers once more. The ropes that bound me fell apart.

  Thus far, my encounter with Tristan was going pretty well. I was now no longer tied up, and I was pretty certain I had an ally against Petra. Sure, Tristan had lied to me about being human instead of a godling, but all of that felt very secondary to him being my ally right now. I simply had to return to Nyumbani.

  Without my help, Rowan could die.

  I gingerly sat up. My muscles ached from being held in one position for so long. I lifted my wrists, showed the manacles to Tristan, and spoke in my most casual voice. “Take these off while you’re at it.”

  “I’m afraid I can’t do that just yet.” Tristan gave me his sad puppy look, which always used to work when I thought he was alive and mortal.

  Not so much now.

  My blood heated with anger. “Why are you here? And why did you never tell me that you’re a godling?” I raked my fingers through my hair. “You know what? Forget I asked. This is our second useless conversation in as many days. You’re a liar.”

  Tristan rounded on Petra. “What have you done? This is precisely how Viktor went evil. You can’t force her.”

  I set my hand on my throat. Tristan now knew about Viktor being groomed to run the Necromancers? It took some effort, but I forced myself to stand. “Someone tell me what’s going on.”