Petra returned the nod and turned back to the murmuring crowd.
“Even though Sylvia has been forgiven and I do not hold her responsible for all of her actions, the fact remains that she did allow the Dragon to consume her and overwhelm her better judgment. Perhaps I haven’t deemed her worthy of death or banishment, but neither can I allow her to go completely unpunished. Instead, I have chosen a different punishment, one that is to her perhaps worse than death.”
“Get on with it!” Karyn growled.
“Sylvia will never again hold any position of authority in Rizkaland, not even ‘princess’ which would have been her right as the daughter of Queen Jane and King Ralph,” Petra declared. “She will henceforth not be allowed to be left alone by herself at any given time, and will preferably be accompanied by her husband, by me, or by the Doorkeeper. She will personally undo and destroy any magic that she has used to torment the people of Rizkaland. The Doorkeeper and I have already created a list for her to work with. Such is her sentence.”
Petra turned to her sister. Sylvia’s eyes were closed, her expression pained, and Petra knew that it was from more than the headache. But she nodded. “It’s only fitting … and I deserve far worse.”
“I’ll say she deserves worse!” Karyn cried. “That isn’t a punishment – that’s making amends!”
“If it were up to me, there’d be no punishment at all,” Petra answered, turning to face the woman. “And if it were merely ‘making amends’ I would not have included the ‘destroy’ part. Trust me, Sylvia likes her power. She doesn’t like the prospect of losing it.”
Sylvia put in, “But it’s only fitting, and there is no point in bickering. Time is not a luxury we have at the moment.” She slowly turned away from the balcony railing. As soon as she let go, she collapsed.
Richard quickly swooped forward and caught her. “You need to go back to bed,” he whispered.
She shook her head. “Time is not a luxury. Take me to my study. Most of my collection is there, I’ll have a chair to sit in, and I’m sure Petra or Laura can fetch me anything they want me to destroy that isn’t already there.”
Considering his options, Richard didn’t really have any room to argue.
“Would you like to come and observe to see that things are done properly, Austila?” Laura asked, turning to Karyn.
Austila. It wasn’t a name, but a word used in at least four different languages, for Laura managed to layer all four meanings into it. Sister. Princess. Bitter one. All-gifted. More importantly, Petra felt as though she had heard Laura use the word before … though she couldn’t say where.
“I would not turn down such an opportunity,” said Karyn. “Lead the way.”
Chapter 4
As Richard settled Sylvia onto her chair, Petra pulled a folded sheet of paper out of her pocket and spread it out on the desk in front of her. “This is the list. Just tell us where to find the things, and we’ll bring them to you. You don’t have to destroy anything that isn’t on here. In fact … there were a few items that I suggested, and Laura adamantly declared that they stay intact.”
Sylvia stared at the list for a long moment, yet seemed not to see it. Finally, she looked up at Petra. “Many of them are stars. Can you drag that chest over here? I’m afraid I can’t recognize them all at a glance.”
Petra nodded at Reuben and Richard to do as Sylvia asked, and they obeyed without hesitation. Petra opened the lid. Sylvia turned and peered in, shifting the gold and silver spheres around with a hand. “So many,” she muttered, pulling out a handful of smaller stars and scattering them across her desk.
“Come on, get on with it,” muttered Karyn.
“I’m sorry … my head is pounding and … I’m not used to such continuous pain.” She fell forward and rested her forehead against the palms of her hands, eyes squeezed shut. “I’m used to it healing and disappearing. I … I can’t think!”
Petra put a hand on Sylvia’s shoulder. “Hey, we’re going to get through this,” she muttered.
“Funny,” said Karyn. “I wasn’t under the impression that thinking was something you did on a regular basis.”
Petra huffed and turned to face the woman. “You’d be surprised at how much forethought and planning goes into convincing a country that you’ve changed so that you can take its reins of government.”
“Fair point,” Karyn admitted.
Sylvia winced under Petra’s hand, and the thoughts swirling through her head were not encouraging, so Petra turned back to her. “You’re not that person anymore, Sylvia. Now, come on, you can do this. The ones for the seasons and storms first. They’re a bit on the critical side.”
Sylvia shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut. “I can’t do it.”
“There is a storm over Klarand of your making!” Karyn shouted. “Don’t tell me you can’t do it. Petra chose to spare your life, stupid decision though it may be. As the price for that, you have to undo all the terrible things that you’ve done. So own up to it! Own up to every terrible thing you did. Alphego knows you can’t fix it all, but do what you can!”
Richard rushed forward and placed himself between them. “Yes, she made some mistakes, but yelling at her isn’t going to make it any better.”
“She made ‘mistakes,’” Karyn repeated. “Some mistakes. She has killed people! Ruined lives! And may I remind you of that storm…”
“Austila,” said Laura. “Yelling isn’t going to make it any better. No, Sylvia’s slate isn’t clean, but don’t let that drive you to dirty yours. You won’t have a dragon to blame.”
Austila. There was that word again – and this time, Petra realized when Laura had last used it. It was one of Sylvia’s memories, not her own and …
No. It was impossible. Petra withdrew her hand from Sylvia’s shoulder and turned to Karyn. It was utterly impossible for her to be Sarah. Sarah was dead. Yet …
“One of your powers is healing touch,” Petra remembered.
“And what of it?” spat Karyn.
“Karyn, I know you don’t like her, and it’s clear that you’ve suffered a lot at her hands, but would you, for Rizkaland, for the sake of the people of Klarand who are right now suffering because of that storm, heal Sylvia? The scale wreaked a lot of damage on her.”
Karyn’s face twisted with a poisonous glare, but before she could say anything scathing, Laura spoke.
“That’s an excellent idea, Petra. It would save us a bit of time. Austila, why don’t you use it?”
Karyn drew back, her expression hardening. “I was planning to save it for any survivors who were injured in the storm. Even I have limits.”
“There will be no survivors if Sylvia isn’t able to destroy the storm,” Petra pointed out.
“Petra, are you sure this is a good idea?” asked Richard, glancing at her.
“No,” Petra admitted. “But this is a calculated risk that I want to take.”
“A calculated risk,” Richard repeated. His gaze shifted to his wife. “I’ve heard a thing or two about those. Very well. But please be careful.” He stepped out of the way.
Petra turned her focus back to Karyn. “Will you do it for Rizkaland?”
Karyn shook her head in disbelief. “I never thought I would ever hear anyone ask me to heal Amber for Rizkaland.”
“I’m not asking you to heal Amber. I already did that. I’m asking you to heal Sylvia.” Petra stepped forward and placed a hand on Karyn’s arm. “I know you couldn’t remember her, and I know what she’s done to you, and what you’ve seen her do to Rizkaland and Klarand. But we’ve all been given a second chance. Don’t throw it away, please…” Petra couldn’t bring herself to use Sarah’s name. “Please, Austila.”
“That is Laura’s name for me.”
“But it’s not an untrue word for her to use, is it?” said Laura.
Karyn pulled out of Petra’s hold, and stood, very stubborn and still, staring at Petra.
“She … she doesn’t have to do it if she does
n’t want to,” said Sylvia, removing her head from her hands and straightening. “I … I can find the stars I need.”
“Time is of the essence,” said Karyn, stepping forward. “And since Petra is being stubborn – no surprise there, to be honest – some of the rest of us will have to bend.” She wrapped her hands around Sylvia’s head and closed her eyes. A moment later, she stepped back, and Sylvia heaved a huge sigh of relief.
“Thank you,” said Sylvia, turning to face Karyn. “I … know that couldn’t have been easy for you. So … thank you.”
Karyn turned away. “Just get on with it. Although … when was the last time you ate? Petra said you’ve been unconscious for a couple days. It’d be just like her to forget to feed you.”
“She’s had some soup,” said Richard.
Karyn nodded sharply. “Very well, it’s good that you start with a little bit at a time.”
“We might be here a while, though,” said Laura, “so it might be a good idea if you boys fetch her some more food.”
Petra met Reuben’s eye. Let us have a few minutes. I’m not certain … but Austila was the name Laura called Sarah.
And you think…
Let us have a few minutes. I don’t know what happened to her, how she’s even still alive, but if I know my sister, she’ll come out of her shell faster if there’s less of an audience.
Just be careful.
You know I am.
Reuben put a hand on Richard’s shoulders. “Well, it’s clear that the ladies no longer have need of us, and are cleverly trying to get rid of us, eh?”
Richard managed a small smile. “Perhaps we should get back to your lessons if they think they have everything under control.”
“That’s a good idea,” said Laura. “Just bring some food ‘round in about thirty minutes.”
And peppermint tea, Petra added.
Ah, peppermint. So you are still freaking out. Can do.
Nothing keeps mind and spirit together like peppermint.
The boys disappeared, leaving Petra alone with her sisters. And Laura, but she was almost a sister, despite how weird she was. Petra’s whole family was weird, now. It really didn’t matter.
As Sylvia focused on her stars, in order to find the right ones, Petra pulled Karyn aside. “Thank you, Sarah,” she whispered.
Karyn’s face hardened, and she turned away. “Sarah is dead,” she stated.
“I don’t think she’s as dead as you want people to think she is,” said Petra. “Austila. Do you know what the word means?”
“Laura told me once,” Karyn admitted. “It means sister.”
“In one language, yes,” Petra agreed. “In another, it means, ‘princess,’ in another, ‘all-gifted.’ Sarah Pandora Arden, that’s your name summed up in one word. I just … how did you survive the poison?”
“Sarah is dead,” Karyn repeated, her expression hardening. “Amber killed her.” She heaved a heavy sigh. “Petra, I’ve wanted to tell you the truth, but I can’t. It’s dangerous for me to even admit that … I had to get Adnama to tell Robert for me. But when … I honestly wanted her to tell you, too, but she Spoke that you’re not to know until the proper time. You don’t argue with a Speech.”
“I know now,” said Petra. “Laura was the one who let me know. Can you tell me what you can?”
“I shall try.” Karyn closed her eyes. “But you must understand that I run the risk of the poison finishing its work. After fifty years of holding it back, I don’t have much life left to stop it.”
“I understand,” said Petra.
“Teleportation wasn’t her only gift. She was aptly named ‘Pandora.’ Like Robert, her gifts included disguise, which she used to masquerade as an elf so that none suspected that the Bookholder had married a human.”
Petra slowly nodded. “That explains why you appeared quite elven until Amber placed the Azit necklace on you.”
“But because she was poisoned in her true form…” Karyn finally turned to Petra again. “Adnama’s gift is neutralizing poisons, but the poison Amber used was too strong for her. If your sister had been in a disguise when Amber poisoned her, then they could have merely locked off that particular disguise, and none needed to have been any the wiser. But that was her true form, and the elven disguise she used as Ritis’s wife was very similar – just the pointing of her ears and changing of her eye color. I’m sorry, Petra, but Sarah is dead. And Amber, that monster you’ve sanctioned, whether she’s your sister or not, was the one who killed her. In cold blood, at that.”
Petra took a deep breath but did not break eye contact with her sister. “I know,” she whispered. “I know what happened that day. I’ve examined Sylvia’s memories. Laura and I have talked about it. I wish, and I know Sylvia wishes too, that it could be undone…”
“All the wishing in the world won’t undo it,” muttered Karyn. “A part of Sarah may still survive within me, but she’s as good as dead.”
There was a crash, a pop, and a crackle at that very moment, and Petra’s attention turned to Sylvia.
“Are you making progress?” she asked, just as Sylvia crushed another star, releasing another crash, pop, and crackle.
“Those were the two with which I have been manipulating Rizkaland’s weather and seasons,” she explained.
“Did you put things back the way they were before you did that?” demanded Karyn.
“It wasn’t necessary,” Sylvia answered. “The power of these disks is that it will undo the effects of whatever magic it destroys. It can’t turn back time, of course, or bring back life, that power belongs to Alphego alone … but everything short of that. The storm has been dissipated, and as we speak, autumnal winds are blowing.”
Karyn nodded sharply. “I suppose that does save time.”
An idea occurred to Petra, and she hastened to Sylvia’s side. “Do this one now,” she said, leaning over her sister’s shoulder and running her finger down the list until she found the star Akik.
Sylvia stiffened. “The poison star. That star … it’s the one…”
“I know.”
“Destroying it won’t bring Sarah back. It can’t reverse death. Life is in Alphego’s hands, not to be played with by man – with magic or without,” Sylvia protested.
“I know,” said Petra. She bent over and sifted through the stars until she found one, just a bit bigger than a normal marble, with a slightly green tinge. “It’s this one, isn’t it?”
Sylvia silently picked up the star and set it on a stand on the corner of her desk. Glowing lines lit up on the star’s surface, and Sylvia slowly nodded. “This is the one. But, Petra, you must understand, destroying this won’t bring Sarah back.”
“Sylvia, I understand. But you agreed to destroy the items on this list, and this star is on the list.”
“I … I know,” said Sylvia. “But shouldn’t we focus first on the items that will have immediate effects? Like this necklace.” She pointed to an item on the list. “It’s what I used to enrage the animals in the forests of Rizkaland and Klarand. Or perhaps this…”
“Sylvia,” Petra repeated, “I understand. But it won’t take you more than a moment to destroy this star since I’ve already found it for you. Let’s get it over with.”
Petra glanced back over her shoulder at Karyn. It was clear that Sylvia hadn’t overheard their conversation. Petra wasn’t terribly surprised. She and Karyn had spoken in undertones, and Sylvia had been rather absorbed by the examination of her stars.
“Silver,” said Laura. “Why are you hesitating?”
Sylvia took a deep breath as she set Akik on top of the bottom disk, and brought the other disk down on it. The crash, pop, and crackle weren’t as loud as they had been for the other stars, but Karyn gave a sudden shriek of pain. Petra and the other two turned to see her bent forward, gripping her left shoulder – the shoulder that had been poisoned fifty years before.
“Sarah, are you all right?” Petra asked, stepping forward and placing a hand on h
er other shoulder.
Karyn glanced up, and the expression of pain melted out of her eyes. “What … what was that?”
“Sylvia destroyed the poison that was in your system,” Petra explained. “Try taking your true form – be Sarah again.”
Karyn nodded, took a step backward, and disappeared in a glittering cloud.
“Sarah?” Sylvia repeated, her voice thin. “She’s Sarah.”
“I only just figured it out myself,” Petra admitted.
The cloud dissipated, and an old woman stood in Karyn’s place, wearing Karyn’s outfit. She was very thin, very frail – frailer than Ritis, even. Her hair was white and thinning, but still curled and frizzed the way Petra and Sylvia’s did. Her eyes were clouded but still held an amber glare.
Laura had a chair ready and helped Sarah lower herself into it.
“It feels good to be yourself again, doesn’t it?” Laura asked.
Sarah shook her head. “I – I forgot how old I was. It’s been a while since I last assumed my proper age.” She disappeared in another glittering cloud, and a younger version of her sat in her place. She appeared in her mid-forties – the age she had been when Amber poisoned her.
“It is you,” Sylvia whispered. “You’re alive … I didn’t kill you.”
“Yes, you failed,” said Sarah, standing. Her voice was sharp and mocking. “However, you still meant to kill me, and you came incredibly close. I’ll let you keep the credit.” She flexed her arms and fingers. “My, but it does feel good to be myself again. Alas, but the life I knew is gone. Gone forever.”
“How … how did you survive?”
“It wasn’t easy, sister dearest,” Sarah answered, her voice dripping with venom. “Nor does it matter at the moment.” She tapped the list on Sylvia’s desk. “My survival changes nothing. Get back to what you were doing.”
“Sarah, I’m sorry. I didn’t know…”
“You didn’t know what? That we were sisters? Oh, fair enough. I didn’t know either. Only Petra would have the audacity to fancy herself related to the Lady Dragon, whom she was supposed to kill. By the way,” Sarah paused in her outburst to turn to Petra, “how do you plan to explain this to our mother?”
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