Wild Born

by Brandon Mull

  Abeke gently touched one of her paws. “We’re a team now. Like it or not, we’re both far from home, but at least we have each other. I can tell you don’t love this ship. Neither do I. But it’s just taking us someplace where we can be outside again. I really do like you — you’re quiet, you’re not pushy, and we come from the same place. I want to learn to work together.”

  Uraza purred and Abeke fluttered inside. Was it her imagination, or had they begun to connect? It was difficult to be sure.

  Abeke turned to face Shane.

  “Whenever you’re ready,” he invited.

  Abeke shuffled forward, the stick held in front of her. Back home, she had used a spear at times, and had practiced a lot with a bow. She knew little about fighting with a knife.

  This didn’t seem like an effective way to confront a larger, more experienced opponent. She would never approach somebody like Shane openly. Her only chance would be to strike from behind, attack out of hiding. With surprise on her side, she’d have much better odds of succeeding.

  But this was just practice. She needed to fight according to Shane’s guidelines. Maybe there was something predatory in Uraza that would amplify her efforts.

  As Abeke closed in, she tried a quick stab. Shane pivoted away, slapping her wrist. Three more stabs led to three more slaps. She felt no assistance from Uraza. “This is pointless,” Abeke groaned, relaxing her stance.

  “You just need —”

  She lunged and stabbed hard, hoping to catch him off guard. Shane dodged her attack and seized her wrist. For a moment they struggled. Abeke silently asked Uraza for help. Shane pried the stick from her fingers and touched it to her belly.

  “Good try,” he said. “You almost caught me napping.”

  “I would never attack you like this in real life,” Abeke said. “I’d sneak up on you.”

  Shane nodded. “That would be smarter. And more suited to how a leopard would hunt. Tell you what — I’ll go to the far side of the hold and stand with my back to you. I won’t turn unless I hear something suspicious. Deal?”

  Abeke nodded. This new game would play to her more proven abilities.

  Shane returned the stick to her and trotted to the far side of the room. Staying low, her pretend knife ready, Abeke crept forward. Step by step she drew nearer.

  “Are you moving yet?” Shane asked, facing away from her. “If so, you’re good at it. If not, hurry up — we don’t have all day.”

  Abeke fought against a smile. She knew that she was a skilled stalker, and it was nice to hear Shane recognize it. Glancing over her shoulder, she found the leopard watching attentively, her posture more alert than earlier.

  The door near Shane burst open and a figure raced toward him. Robed in black, face covered, the attacker held a curved sword ready. Shane ducked a swipe of the sword and grappled with the intruder.

  “Run, Abeke!” Shane shouted. “It’s an assassin. Fetch the captain!”

  The assassin was bigger than Shane. They wrestled for control of the sword.

  Abeke found herself in a low crouch, both unfamiliar and instinctive. A foreign energy blazed into her muscles — every fiber seemed taut and ready to release. Her senses had never felt so keen. She heard the subtle creak of the timbers as the ship rocked gently to the right. She could smell the attacker, a full-grown man, and could distinguish easily between him and Shane. Her vision was enhanced as well, sharpened. No part of her intended to heed Shane’s instruction to run.

  Her heart swelled with courage. And she sprang.

  Although several paces from Shane, Abeke closed the distance with a single leap. Hurtling through the air, she lashed out with one leg and kicked the attacker in the arm. He spun to one knee and his sword flew free, clattering across the plank floor. The man rose to his feet with a vicious uppercut that Abeke evaded almost without thought. He backed off a step or two, one hand up, ready for combat, the other flopping useless at his side. Abeke leaped forward and kicked him in the ribs, her foot crashing through his attempt to block it. The blow landed with enough force to send the assassin flying into the wall. He slumped facedown.

  Her instincts screamed to finish the job, but before Abeke could close in, she felt a firm hand on her shoulder. “No, Abeke! No more! It was pretend. He was acting.”

  She slipped out of her heightened state and glared at Shane. “Pretend?”

  Uraza gave an angry growl, the first Abeke had heard from the leopard.

  “I wanted to see how you would perform under pressure,” Shane explained. “It worked, Abeke. That was incredible! Many of the Marked train their entire lives without ever attacking like that.”

  Trembling with unreleased energy, Abeke struggled to calm herself. The praise did not escape her notice, but it was hard to embrace it when she felt so stunned. “You got a true response through trickery,” she said. “What you just did to us was a betrayal.”

  “I-I’m sorry.” Shane’s smile fell. His earlier excitement gave way to embarrassment. “Really. I was trying to help. It was a training technique. I didn’t know you’d see it this way.”

  “Never again,” Abeke said, struggling to calm herself, “or the next time you’re in trouble, we will let the attackers have you.”

  “Agreed.” Shane ran a hand through his hair. “You’re right, it was unfair to you and to Uraza. It won’t happen again.”

  Abeke felt some of the tension leave her. She nodded toward the fallen assailant. “Is he all right?”

  Shane crouched beside him and felt his neck. “He’s unconscious. He’ll live.” He shook his head. “Honestly, I couldn’t imagine you would have been able to take out a trained, full-grown opponent. Let me take care of this. You know the way back to your cabin.”

  Abeke turned and found Uraza facing her, having approached silently. Now there was no doubt about the wordless understanding. Abeke held out her arm. With a searing pain and a brief flash, Uraza leaped to become a blaze of black just below her elbow.

  6 SUNSET TOWER

  ROLLAN STOOD WITH HIS HEAD TIPPED BACK, USING ONE hand to shield his eyes from the sun as he followed the flight of his falcon. Essix turned in two wide circles, soaring higher than the tallest spire of the Greencloak fortress.

  The grass came up to Rollan’s knees. Inside Sunset Tower, they had training rooms and spacious courtyards, but he preferred spending time outside the walls. Too many people inside the fortress stared at him, some with doubt, others expectantly. Either reaction unsettled him.

  Besides, it was prettier outside. Wilderness had surrounded Concorba at a distance, but he rarely ever saw it. There were a few parks in town, some weedy lots, and the muddy banks of Sipimiss River, but the port city was mostly a place of commerce. He had occasionally seen farmland beyond the town boundaries, but nothing like this — not big hills, not woods, not wild meadows.

  An imposing collection of bulky structures enclosed by tall walls of heavy stone, Sunset Tower was not the main Amayan stronghold of the Greencloaks. Rather, it served as the westernmost Greencloak outpost in Northern Amaya. Any farther west led to untamed land controlled mostly by beasts and the Amayan tribes.

  Rollan whistled. “Essix, to me!”

  The bird continued to glide on lofty breezes.

  “Essix, come!”

  The falcon drifted through another lazy turn.

  “Get down here! How hard is it to follow simple instructions? The dimmest kid I know can do that much!”

  Bad move. Essix now seemed to be flying farther away from him on purpose. Rollan took a calming breath. He had already learned that shouting angry words would keep the bird in the sky all day. “Please, Essix,” he called more gently. “Olvan wants us to learn to work as one.”

  The falcon tucked her wings and plunged toward him. He held up a protected hand, the large brown glove a gift from Olvan. After arrowing down with blinding speed, Essix spread her wings at the last moment to slow her descent and alighted on his forearm.

  “Good girl,�
� Rollan said, stroking her feathers. “Want to try the passive state? Want to become a mark on my arm?”

  Rollan needed no comprehension of bird speech to recognize that her piercing cry meant absolutely not. Rollan gritted his teeth but kept petting her. “Come on, Essix. You don’t want us to look useless when the others get here. Let’s show them what we can do.”

  The falcon cocked her head to stare at him with one amber eye. Her feathers ruffled up, but she made no further sound.

  “Hey, it doesn’t just reflect on me,” Rollan said. “It makes you look bad too.”

  Behind him, a horn sounded. Another horn answered. The Greencloaks at Sunset Tower liked to announce their comings and goings with horns.

  “That probably means they’re here,” Rollan said.

  Essix hopped to his shoulder.

  Yesterday, Olvan had informed Rollan that two of the other three Fallen Beasts were on their way to Sunset Tower with their bonded partners. He explained that after they arrived, Rollan would learn more about what was needed from him. There was always one reason or another to delay a full explanation.

  Rollan wondered if the other kids had already taken the Greencloak vows. Olvan said that the vows meant a lifetime commitment to defending Erdas and standing united with the other Greencloaks. In return, Rollan would receive help developing his relationship with Essix, he would be given duty and purpose, and he would never want for food, shelter, or fellowship.

  Rollan wasn’t sure he bought it. The return of the Four Fallen was supposed to be a really big deal, but Olvan refused to say what they were actually meant to do. How long did Olvan expect him to wait?

  Now that Essix had freed Rollan from a life of poverty, he questioned whether he wanted to tie himself down. He had never enjoyed taking orders. People with authority tended to abuse it. With Essix on his shoulder, who knew what options awaited? It was possible that joining the Greencloaks would prove to be his best opportunity, especially if he had become a target of people like Zerif. Then again, Rollan hadn’t had time to explore all of the alternatives. Instead of turning down Olvan, Rollan asked for time to think it over. That had been three days ago.

  As Rollan tromped through the tall grass toward the gate of Sunset Tower, a grim Greencloak astride a mighty horse rode into view. A girl walked beside the Greencloak on one side and a boy on the other. A panda ambled beside the girl, and a large wolf loped beside the boy. They were all headed for Rollan, so he picked up his pace. He knew the panda and wolf must be two of the other Fallen, Jhi and Briggan.

  The Greencloak dismounted when he drew near, and Rollan sized him up. He was the sort of stranger Rollan would have avoided on the streets of Concorba.

  The boy had blond hair and wore a green cloak, meaning he had taken the vows. Although he was average height for his age, he seemed young. He had a friendly, open face — the sort of face that hadn’t figured out what life was like yet. The girl was striking. She had sparkling eyes and a shy smile that stopped Rollan in his tracks. A faint response in her expression told Rollan that she appreciated his reaction, and he realized that her shy smile was practiced. Judging by her outfit and her features, she came from Zhong, which made sense, given her spirit animal. Rollan had never seen a real panda. Or a wolf. His only exposure to such creatures came from the Widow Renata, who used to visit the orphanage and read them picture books about the Great Beasts.

  “I’m Tarik,” the Greencloak said. “I take it you’re Rollan?”

  “I was trying to keep a low profile,” Rollan said. “How could you tell? It was the falcon, wasn’t it?”

  “Meilin, Conor, I would like you to meet Rollan,” Tarik said. “He was born and raised here in Amaya. Just as you two summoned Jhi and Briggan, he called Essix.”

  The wolf padded forward and the falcon fluttered down to stand before it. The panda moved in close as well, and Essix gave a soft screech. The three animals cautiously investigated each other.

  “Do they remember?” Meilin asked, speaking Common. She had a nice voice. It matched her appearance.

  “Perhaps,” Tarik said. “It’s difficult to pinpoint how much of their former lives they recall. Much of it might be instinct at this stage.”

  “What about the fourth Fallen Beast?” Rollan asked. “Uraza.”

  Tarik scowled. “Somebody got to Uraza and her new partner before us, much as Zerif attempted with you. The girl is named Abeke. We don’t know her present location, but we won’t rest until we find her. Lenori believes that she and Uraza are still alive. The challenge will be finding them.”

  “Is Lenori how you found us?” Conor asked.

  Tarik nodded. “Lenori is the most gifted visionary of all the Greencloaks. Thanks to her unique foresight, we suspected the Four Fallen were returning.”

  “Her powers can’t be entirely unique,” Rollan pointed out. “Not if somebody beat you to the girl in Nilo.”

  “If Uraza is currently lost,” Meilin said, “then the three of us must represent the Four Fallen. Aren’t we supposed to learn what’s going on, now that we’re together?”

  “That information is Olvan’s to share,” Tarik told her. “You already know that we want you to join the Greencloaks and help us preserve Erdas.”

  “From the Devourer?” Rollan asked, not hiding his skepticism.

  Tarik seemed momentarily startled by this question. “Who mentioned the Devourer?”

  “This guy I met,” Rollan said. “He was riding a moose.”

  “We’re still not positive who we’re up against. If it isn’t the Devourer himself, it’s somebody very much like him. It shouldn’t be long before Olvan explains why we need your help. For the moment, you three should seize this chance to get better acquainted. You’ll see a lot of each other in the coming days. I’ll ride ahead to announce our arrival.”

  “Get ready to be stared at,” Rollan warned the others as Tarik rode away. “It’s all people have done since I arrived. At first I worried I had food on my face.”

  “People tend to stare at newcomers,” Meilin said. “Especially important ones.”

  “I guess our animals make us important,” Conor said, sounding uncertain whether he believed it.

  The conversation died out. Conor looked uneasy.

  Rollan sized up the other two and their animals. Briggan was the most impressive beast. Rollan knew some people back in Concorba he would love to scare with a wolf like that. The panda just sat pawing at the grass. Conor seemed shy. Meilin acted uninterested.

  “Judging by your clothes, I take it you’re rich,” Rollan said to her.

  “Wealth is relative,” she replied with a cold look. “The emperor has much more treasure than my father.”

  Rollan chuckled. “If the Zhongese emperor is your example of someone richer than you, you have to be loaded.”

  “My father is a general and there are also successful merchants in my bloodline.”

  “Yep, rich,” Rollan said. “What about you, Conor? Do you have a family or a bloodline?”

  Conor blushed a little, glancing at Meilin. “A family. We have bloodlines, I guess, but we don’t use that word. We’re shepherds. I got stuck as a servant for a time, but I always preferred the outdoors.”

  “And I’m an orphan,” Rollan said bluntly. “I’m only here because Essix was my ticket out of jail.”

  “Jail!” Conor exclaimed. “What did you do?”

  Rollan checked to make sure they were both listening closely, then leaned in. “Actually, I was innocent — not that I had any proof. I was arrested for stealing medicine from an apothecary.”

  “Were you sick?” Conor asked.

  “A friend had a bad fever. But I didn’t swipe the medicine. Another friend did. I was around when it happened, so they assumed I was in on it.”

  “Which is the lie?” Meilin asked. “That you were in jail, or that you were there for stealing medicine?”

  Rollan shrugged. “You got me. I’m actually Olvan’s son. He’s having me spy on
you.”

  Meilin didn’t challenge him further, but Rollan could tell she didn’t trust him. Maybe she wasn’t completely stupid. It was a pretty far-fetched story. Plus she hadn’t accepted a green cloak yet.

  Conor peered over his shoulder at Sunset Tower. “What do you think they want us to do?”

  “Maybe you should have asked before you put on the cloak,” Rollan suggested.

  “I expect they’ll want us as soldiers,” Meilin said. “Leaders, probably. The war has already begun.”

  “I bet they want us as mascots,” Rollan said. “They’ll probably add me to the Amayan flag.”

  Conor laughed, blushing slightly. “Can you imagine? As if all the attention didn’t make me uncomfortable enough.”

  “This is a poor hour for humor,” Meilin snapped, her eyes blazing. “Zhong is under heavy attack. The Greencloaks smuggled me away as my father fought to defend our city. I still haven’t heard whether he lived or died! Whatever they have planned for us better be good.”

  Rollan eyed her warily. “I’m not sure how helpful I’ll be,” Rollan said. “Do you two have any tips about the animals? I can hardly get Essix to do anything.”

  “I’ve been trying with Briggan,” Conor said, crouching to pet his wolf. “He can be stubborn. The more we’ve gotten to know each other, the better it’s become. Tarik told me that eventually we can get powers from them.”

  Rollan glanced at Meilin and her panda. “What’s your power going to be? Cuddling?”

  Meilin’s face was pure ice. For a moment her lips trembled, but after that the anger only touched her eyes. She held out her arm and in a flash Jhi became a design on the back of her hand. She turned and stormed away.

  “See,” Rollan called. “Like that! How did you figure that out?”

  “Too late,” Conor said quietly. “I haven’t known Meilin long, but I can tell she has a temper.”

  “Can you do that too?” Rollan asked. “The tattoo thing?”

  “Not yet,” Conor said.