The Truth about Heroes: Complete Trilogy (Heroes Trilogy)

by Krista Gossett

  As they approached, Melchior dropped his hand from his weapon and spread his arms in a peaceful gesture. Rienna knew this move; he had his group behind him ready to strike so he was hardly acting without tact.

  “Sirs, is there a problem here?” Melchior asked with casual respect.

  “Not unless you’re looking for one,” the largest of the group struck out coldly. “Wicked wounds on your head there, deserter.”

  Rienna wrapped her hands around Justice and knew this wasn’t a fight they were going to be permitted to pass up. She cursed herself for that oversight.

  “I’m not going to hold back since I see you’re all doing this of your own free will, you know,” Melchior said tapping at his temples, a deadly smile spreading as his eyes grew cold. Damn him, but he wanted this fight. Rienna would kick his ass herself if they weren’t already outnumbered.

  The man made to draw but Krose’s dagger was in his forehead before he could finish. Rienna had been the next to hack through two of the men approaching from the slain man’s left, laying open a throat and slamming into the helmet of the other, the force of her blow not piercing him but crushing his skull with a sickening crackle. Ashe had been able to take out three in quick order, those diaphanous silks weighted with razor thin swords only visible when the blood seemed to stick in the air impossibly. Despite the fact that he had been in the back, Dinsch had leapt over the others and took out the other two by surprise, crushing one under an earth-shaking landing and the other he sent flying into that strange orange rock leaving an almost comical splatter of blood in the shape of the man who had been crushed into it. All of this having happened so fast that the sound of the last guard’s sick gory slide down the rock was the last of the sounds. Melchior had not even needed to draw a weapon and stood there with his arms folded. Rienna knocked him on his ass but he laughed and got to his feet.

  They turned their attention to Dinsch when Ashe spoke up. “How did you use the earthquake move?” Ashe asked, tilting his head and smirking.

  Dinsch frowned and shrugged. “Not sure how to answer it, you know. I just felt like I needed to be stronger and I could remember that quake the Gnome had so easily set off just stomping his foot. He said I had his power, yes? So I just really wanted to use it. I think it only works when you know what you want. I bet I could’ve even crushed them with that ugly egg rock. Seems like an earth power, right?”

  The others seemed to have wanted a more exact answer but it made sense. All of them seemed to be thinking of what their elementals were masters of and it was clear that short of asking about the powers, maybe they could get away with testing these things on their own.

  “We know what our elementals represent, but it’s even possible these powers might even work in combination. Fire and light both burn and water becomes steam when heated. It seems like something we need to work with. Before turning to the elementals, that is,” Rienna offered, reflecting thoughts they were all coming around to.

  Ashe had suggested that they ought to pick a spot outside this village they were heading to and try the concept out. They seemed to agree with this and continued on towards the trees to the east. It was clear now that maybe they could pull this off partially on their own. They may have to borrow these powers but maybe they could get away with doing this without directly involving the elementals. Rienna seemed to be closest to Sea Star than the others had been to theirs (although Melchior had seemed to have no issue with enlisting Nuriel as a torch in the darkness), but she was still haunted that Belias had needed to warn her that Sea Star would have ended her journey sooner than given her the gifts. She had only called Sea Star when she absolutely had to and she seemed like a quiet, kind spirit most of the time, yet she had remembered the rage she had seen towards Lumina as well. If it were possible, she would much rather take the next steps without Sea Star. Elementals were extreme and impulsive and human quarrels were complicated enough without throwing that into the mix.

  Dreana was a lush place indeed and the trees went from sparse to dense rather quickly on the way to the village. It was larger than one would expect from a village but it was wealthy so it wasn’t as densely populated as they had imagined. The people here seemed fond of face paints and tattoos like the northern tribes of Vieres so although most of Melchior and Ashe’s tattoos were hidden (save the ones on their necks and Ashe’s visible arms) the tribes folk seemed eager to receive them once their eyes locked onto them. In fact, a few of the girls here seemed thrilled to see Melchior too and Rienna just rolled her eyes as this ritual continued. She wasn’t jealous now; she was counting herself lucky that she hadn’t fell for Melchior, thinking her naïve heart would have been severed by his unfaithfulness. Perhaps this was what she wasn’t seeing when Belias had defended her: Melchior’s collection of ‘toys.’

  They set about stocking up on supplies and Dinsch and Krose volunteered to set up camp outside of town while the others explored more. Melchior had disappeared quickly after purchases were settled and Ashe had mumbled something about asking around, so Rienna had ended up standing in the marketplace, looking for where she would start. She would have liked to spy on Melchior to see what he was up to, but he was both long gone and she really wasn’t up to watching him fuck around if he weren’t actually up to anything. She wished Pierait wasn’t so good at slipping away too. She realized that this had been the first time she had been alone since she had set out on this journey and it was both intimidating and freeing. She wasn’t asking anyone where to go next or sorting through logic and priorities. She decided to start by finding a nice café and trying a cool native drink. Preferably not one that altered her quite so thoroughly as Swoonfruit. She had enjoyed their feast in Nemiah and the Swoonfruit at the Bryfolk Hole so she opted for a suggestion from the locals this time too, with the provision it not have a similarly mind-altering effect.

  Rienna had found a perfect little place, set in a spot that let the gentler sunlight towards the shore stream through a clearing. It was a nice outdoor eatery with white wicker chairs with fan-backs that reminded her of sitting in that enormous seashell Sea Star had sat her in. There were brass pots filled with leafy fronds marking the eating space while the patio, if you could call it that, was soft spongy cool earth covered in a dry soft moss. It had felt like a plush carpet while walking across it to take a seat and she gave into the urge to take off her boots and sink her bare feet into it. She had sighed with such pleasure as she sunk into the chair that she was a little embarrassed when a smiling woman carrying a silver tray had announced she would bring a menu.

  When the woman returned, Rienna couldn’t tear her eyes away at first. The woman was older than her; she could tell by the way she carried herself but her childlike face was the same flawless caramel color as the rest of her skin. Her eyes were the most stunning shade of sea foam green and under her silk head covering she could see the long fringe of silky black hair woven into a massive braided rope. She was built like Freesia, but with Night’s dark rope of hair but she was even more liquid of movement than either of them; it wouldn’t have surprised her to know the woman was a contortionist. She was no great beauty but she had a classically pretty look and such startlingly contrasting features that you might have trouble looking away. Rienna was not quite sure what pulled her to study her so well but she put it up to actually having the opportunity to do so. The woman smiled guilelessly.

  “My name is Verity, miss. I see you’re new to Dreana so let me know if you are unfamiliar with the menu,” Verity had said with a sweeping curtsy.

  “Actually, I’d like to leave it to your discretion. A light dish, not too spicy or meaty and I’d like a cool drink, fruity and sweet, but not too strong in spirits,” Rienna asked with a bit of upward inflection as if to ask if she was okay with making a recommendation. Verity’s eyes lit up and she nodded cheerily.

  “I know just the thing! You are in time for the new season change and the ingredients are freshly gathered,” Verity had chimed with glee.

 
; Verity had returned after a few short minutes and Rienna was very grateful. Verity waited to see her try a bite: it was an herbspeckled, light-flavored fish drizzled with a sweet peach-hued fruit sauce and a crunchy crumb topping. Rienna’s eyebrows had shot up in amazement and her eyes fluttered shut as she moaned her approval. Verity had clapped her hands with delight and when Rienna took a sip of the drink, Rienna could have melted with satisfaction. Verity curtsied again and suggested she enjoy the meal at her leisure and made herself scarce. Rienna had savored the meal with a few sips of the sweet drink and when Verity came back to take the plate, she couldn’t thank Verity enough and proceeded to slink back, close her eyes, and sip.

  When her eyes opened after a moment, she nearly jumped seeing Ashe’s unnervingly angelic face rimmed by the descending sun behind him. He was only wearing the sleeveless undershirt and she guessed it was mostly to show off the tattoos. She wished those arms weren’t so bare since she always involuntarily imagined them snaking around her. The light breeze made his soft light hair look like wisps of clouds. She wanted to reach out and touch it, see if it could possibly be any softer than Dinsch’s fur. She righted herself and cleared her throat.

  “How long have you been here?” Rienna asked, her words were casual but her unease sped up her pulse. It was hard to inject any authority into her words from the chair but she thought of it as a throne and straightened her back and it helped achieve the illusion.

  “You won’t like the answer but since you took your boots off. I couldn’t bear to disturb you because I never saw you looking so peaceful before. If not for that dress, I never would have thought it was you. You’re irresistible when you smile,” Ashe admitted, but not teasingly. His eyes were soft but otherwise unreadable. Was he flirting or being sociable?

  “So basically you’ve been following me since I thought I was alone,” Rienna said sighing heavily. So much for the illusion of independence. It did warm her heart a little that she was not forgotten though.

  “No, no, not at all. I actually followed Krose following you,” Ashe admitted and this time he did laugh. “He must be out of practice with sneaking because he looked like he was following someone and it didn’t take long to figure it out.”

  “Krose,” she stated, with exasperation as if she weren’t surprised.

  “He follows you like a puppy,” Ashe teased. Enough with the dog analogies.

  “I saved his best friend,” Rienna defended, her back strained to straighten more and she took an angry sip at her drink, sucking in her lips to lick them nervously. He had sucked in his own bottom lip when she did and it unnerved her. If Krose had followed her, he was gone now.

  “It’s more than that. A lot changed since our group had separated. When the three of you told the story, you had rushed over some details about Lumina and then again about the Summer Festival. You had a hard look whenever those two spoke like you were warning them to speak carefully,” Ashe explained, sounding dangerously close to interrogating. Ashe sat down in the char opposite, looking much more royal than she was pulling off. He was teasing her, he had to be, but she was in no mood.

  Rienna slammed her hand on the table and leaned forward to glare at him. “Since when is everyone so keen on what I do? Is it because I’m the only female now? Do you think that gives you some license to pry? You know all that you need to know, so why the hell do you care?!” Rienna hissed back, trying not to draw more attention than her table-slap had started.

  Ashe shrugged and leaned back, looking bored. “Yeah, yeah, I get it; I need to get laid. Seems like no one else is having issues there,” Ashe shot her a look that said he knew she was no exception. She blushed but it was true enough. Not Pierait, of course, but everyone else seemed to be finding some solace there. Rienna looked at her hands in her lap unhappily. She wanted to be appalled by the admission, but she wasn’t exactly gloating from her choices either. “There’s really no point holding onto a thing I was saving for a husband that I never… It was the one thing I wanted to save for him as a woman. I wasn’t very good at being a lady otherwise. It sounds so stupid now,” Rienna confessed, not sure why she told Ashe now but amazed that she hadn’t regretted admitting it.

  “Krose was your first?” Ashe said amazed.

  Rienna shot him an angry look. It was true, but he made it sound more special than it was. She threw it away violently and she didn’t intend to regret it. “I had just watched my friend being incinerated when my element wouldn’t save anyone but me. He had carried me all the way to the Bryfolk Hole himself and he was the only one around when I needed someone. And… well… the Swoonfruit was pretty incredible.”

  Ashe looked at her, not speaking but not judging her, just listening. He hadn’t expected her to be forthright about it and it made it hard to tease her. He was almost proud of her, again for that ability to heal no matter how horrible things got. His throat felt dry and he snatched her cup, gulping it down. She punched his arm unhappily and he laughed, almost choking on the last gulp. She rather liked that drink.

  Rienna searched her pockets to pay and her face fell realizing she didn’t have coin but pearls. It seemed a lousy way to pay. Without a word, Ashe flipped a couple of coins onto the table and they stood to leave. As they headed away, Rienna cupped a handful of pearls into Verity’s hand and her eyes were wide with glee and she waved happily. Rienna frowned now as she walked away. She could have sworn Verity’s wide eyes were violet just then.

  Rienna sighed abruptly and shot a look at Ashe. “Why were you prying? I’m not so foolish as to think you’re taken by my pretty face.”

  “If that was all, then I’d probably follow Pierait too,” Ashe said with a face too straight to not make Rienna laugh. Pierait was prettier than her by far.

  “You can’t tell me you have any trouble attracting women either,” Rienna said shaking her head. “There’s not a man in this bunch that is without… charm.”

  Ashe laughed. “Even Dinsch?”

  Rienna smirked and kept her eyes up at the canopy of trees as she answered. “He’s energetic. Enthusiastic. And the thing about men with big feet isn’t wrong where he’s concerned. His fur is so soft…” she added quickly.

  Ashe laughed and shook his head. “So what did you see in my brother?”

  This time, Rienna shot him a warning look and stopped walking. “There are… certain things that I think need to be left in the past. Knowing what you know—do you really want to fill in the details?”

  Ashe rubbed his jaw thoughtfully. “I don’t think we always have a choice about remembering. It only takes one person recognizing you to bring it rushing in. Melchior remembered the day the barbarians came. He remembered seeing what… their leader had done to me. I was used by men and no telling for how long after. They took me with them. But as I listened they were just words—I couldn’t remember. But I saw how he had relived it and I had to tell him to stop. I know Melchior had loved you back then, Rienna, but he had loved his friend Belias too. He wasn’t mad about losing that hand because he had seen it as atonement for his selfishness. It’s not the details that hurt; it’s the pain of a memory. So far, I really have no way of knowing if I will remember and just how it will hurt if I do. It’s been so long since Malek had ended those memories.”

  “I’m not ready to face the past myself, Ashe. I’m not ready to accept the boy I remember being… him now. I can’t do that yet. So much is happening at once, that I can scarcely catch my breath.”

  “Fair enough. You told me more than I had anticipated anyway. I think I just got greedy,” Ashe jested and she smiled back, feeling a little too aggressive in hindsight.

  Rienna had an odd feeling and her steps slowed. Suddenly her arm shot out and Ashe did not understand until he saw the waitress appear out of thin air, as Rienna held Verity’s throat and pinned her to the wall.

  “I knew there was something different about you. Why are you following us?” Rienna snarled.

  Verity struggled for air and Rienna gave her jus
t enough room to talk.

  “Your amulet, miss. And the gentleman’s dagger. I know who you are. I have the power of Mirage and I see the truth but can bend it,” Verity gasped out apologetically.

  “There is no such element! Are you with Myceum?” Rienna demanded.

  “Not an element. Old magic, old gods. In a time before the elementals were formed. And no; I was told you were after the Royal Army of Myceum. They killed my family, miss, I want them to pay,” Verity said with such passion it was hard to doubt her.

  “You said yourself you bend the truth,” Rienna accused her.

  “Like the oasis in the desert. A glamour. What you see is not what is there. How did you know I was there?” Verity asked unhappily.

  “Your eyes changed color back there. And I just had a feeling,” Rienna admitted. The air had shifted oddly in places and she knew it wasn’t just a trick of her eyes. If they had been in the desert, it was a common occurrence, but not so far inland.

  “Water is intuition, miss, so I should have known better. Will you believe me now?” Verity pleaded.

  Rienna released Verity and saw that her eyes were a more natural shade of golden brown. Rienna did not trust any of them at first and, aside from Night, she had not been wrong so far. She felt that she could at least give Verity a chance.

  She shot a look at Ashe. “Looks like we’ll have another female along after all.”

  Ashe dropped his guardian stance, visibly surprised. “Are you sure?”

  Rienna nodded adamantly. “Way too much of a sausage fest,” she punctuated, using Night’s words.

  Ashe laughed and shrugged gallantly, taking Verity’s hand, kissing it formally.