Asha's Power (Soul Merge Saga Book 4)

by M. P. A. Hanson

  “Come in.” She said as the timid knock on the door announced the arrival of the final girl.

  The teenager entered, and Silver was surprised to find herself face to face with one of the fey.

  “It is unusual for a fey to join the covens.” She began as the girl crept into the room. A tiny thing, standing barely five feet tall, the waif of a girl seemed more nervous than Asha. And this was to be the final wytch queen? Silver wanted to snort.

  “I was cast out.” The girl said. “My powers are not fey, they are wytch-kind.” Her slightly pointed ears peeked out from her short but filthy platinum blonde hair.

  “Your name?” Silver asked, filling the jug with water.

  “Masozi of Clan Iceblood.” She replied quickly and Silver nearly dropped the jug.

  She looked the girl over again, noticing the features the girl shared with Keenan; this was one of his pureblood clansmen, and it showed in the blonde hair and sharp features.

  She nodded, feeling fortunate that she had mastered looking indifferent millennia ago, and poured the water from the jug into the bowl. When she waved the girl closer and passed her the crystal Silver noticed the paper-thin, dragonfly-like wings protruding from her back. Keenan’s half-human heritage denied him the fragile wings of his father’s kind and the fey intolerance for iron. This girl would never be able to lift a normal weapon, and would never even touch the first step of the staircase in the corner of the room.

  “Wave the crystal over the water.” Silver instructed, watching as the girl did so and translating the text for her. “You are to become the wytch queen of war.” She smiled at the possibility of having such a powerful wytch on the Dark Coven, and then frowned at the next words. “I’m to be your mentor.”

  She stared down at the small fey girl with astonishment; she had been sure that Kate would never put another defenceless child under her care, let alone this fragile one with her ragged cotton dress that had crude holes cut in the back of it for her wings. The girl looked terrified, as well she should, and it was at that moment that Asha chose to walk down the stairs, head held high.

  “Oh, pardon my interruption, aunt; Theria said you were finished,” She apologised upon seeing Masozi.

  “I am.” Silver replied. “This is Masozi; she is to be my other student.”

  Asha’s confusion showed instantly, but she made her way down the stairs anyway and proceeded to smile and grasp forearms with the tiny fey. “A pleasure to make your meeting,” She said the formal wytch greeting politely. “I am Princess Asha of the Human Realms and trainee Wytch Queen of Balance.”

  “And I am Masozi, former Princess of Clan Iceblood and I guess I’m the trainee Wytch Queen of War.” There was a flash of strength on Masozi’s features, which intrigued Silver enough not to summon Kate and protest her having a second mentee though her brows rose at the point where both of them introduced themselves as princesses. How many royals could the world have, and were most of them destined to find her one way or another?

  “Well this is all very well and good, but we have little time for idle chit-chat.” Silver muttered. “Masozi in order to come with me you will have to swear never to betray me or my location in front of the Ancients, otherwise you will remain here.” There were living quarters in the immense stone temple, as well as teaching rooms and even a dungeon, but Silver didn’t particularly want to use them when she had enough space at Dalmorin. Several wytch queens were choosing to keep all of their students here, however, and Silver could see them fetching their things from outside as she crossed to the window waiting for Masozi’s answer. During the wait she informed Lena of the need to make up a second bedroom near to Asha’s suitable for one of the fey. The brownie’s response was nearly immediate, informing her of the way all iron that could be removed had been, and that which could not had been covered with brownie polish to protect the girl from its effects.

  “Okay.” The timid voice finally spoke up after an impressive ten minutes of thinking. “I vow to the Ancients not to betray you or your location,”

  “Wonderful.” Silver replied. “I shall hold you to your vow. Now let us depart.” She conjured a portal and walked straight through without waiting to see what the girls would do.

  Chapter Sixteen

  A FRIEND

  Silver walked straight into the living room and saw Keenan sitting in the armchair, still reading that ridiculous book. With a quick hand gesture she told him to remain out of sight but watch what transpired, she had no idea how Masozi would react to finding another cast-out Iceblood, not to mention if the girl was a princess that would probably make her a close relation of his.

  The girls stepped through the portal shortly afterwards, and Silver was surprised to find Asha holding one of the fey’s delicate hands in her own. A single raised eyebrow at her niece earned her a look from Asha that dared her to make something of it. Silver considered telling her to stop coddling the girl, but if Asha was to learn to live with being part of the Dark Coven, she supposed it would help to have a friend with a power that was darker than her own. Just as long as the fey never became a weakness that Asha’s enemies could exploit, she frowned at that thought. Perhaps it would be better to cut the friendship off at the roots.

  “Perhaps you should leave Asha to make her own mistakes.” Theria counselled, “After all, there is nothing this friendship can lead to that you cannot protect her from should the need arise.”

  “Perhaps you are right.” Silver conceded, “Yet it would be easier to simply teach Asha that friends are a weakness, as I have learned.”

  “Yet, though they are a weakness you still allow Keenan to stay with you.”

  “The result of a vow created under pressure.” She brushed it off, even as she knew she would not begrudge Asha this friendship within the coven, and who knew, perhaps the protectiveness Asha felt for the girl would make her bolder during the times when they had to interact with other wytches.

  “Asha, you know where your rooms are, place Masozi in the room across the hall from you; Lena should have already made it up. You are in charge of getting her settled in, I shall meet you back here at dusk when we shall return to the temple for your lessons.”

  She turned on her heel and left, noticing Keenan sneaking out behind her.

  “The girl is fey, and an Iceblood.” He stated as they exited the mountain. “Why is she here?”

  “She is Princess Masozi, and she was cast out when her non-fey powers were discovered. Now she is the wytch queen of war in-training.” Silver replied.

  Keenan grabbed her by the arm as they reached the door. “Masozi is the name of the Winter Court’s crown princess!” He informed her. “That girl was heir to the throne of one of the two great fey courts.”

  That was news to Silver; she had known that the fey were matriarchal, and that the majority of them were tied to either the summer or winter courts, with clans existing within the aristocracy. She knew that the clans warred over the royal seat of each court and only the most ruthless of rulers kept their throne for longer than a few decades. Somehow, while in this constant state of infighting they also found time to be locked in a subtle war between summer and winter, a battle of fire and ice that had raged since time immemorial.

  “She is one of us now.” Silver retorted, shrugging away his hand and continuing towards the door. “I was going to separate her from Asha but having a weaker friend to protect appears to be bringing Asha out of her state of nervousness and denial.”

  “She is my half-sister.” Keenan said suddenly.

  Silver stopped dead and turned to look at him.

  “I am the royal bastard of the Queen’s consort, Masozi’s father.” Keenan replied, “Though I am old enough she has probably never heard of me.”

  “Does she have ice powers like you?” Silver asked.

  “I would suspect not if they cast her out. Wytch powers would have been seen as a disgrace only if they were the only power she had or if she had no other way to cover them up.” />
  Silver nodded slowly, “She has no way to return then, I take it?”

  “Not unless she learns to hide her powers and develops control over ice.” Keenan replied. “Even then, I doubt it; she was dead to them from the moment she left the shores of the fey islands.”

  Silver nodded. “I will leave you to introduce yourself, should you wish. In the meantime, I need to find my cousins, they have been gone for far too long and Maria is a dangerous adversary.”

  Keenan took her hand and kissed it gently, “Be safe.” He whispered against her skin.

  Some unnamed emotion caught in Silver’s throat, denying her the ability to castigate him for his ridiculous sentiment and leaving her only with the capacity to nod.

  *

  Asha walked down the iron staircase more than ready to follow her mother’s advice and ask Aunt Silver to summon Grandma Kate to beg to be allowed to stay with the light coven for the first year of her training, only to stop short as she saw her aunt talking to a peculiar girl. A girl who looked more frightened than she did, a girl who also had wings.

  Silver looked up and Asha apologised instantly. “Oh, pardon my interruption, aunt; Theria said you were finished,”

  “I am.” Silver informed her, “This is Masozi; she is to be my other student.”

  Another dark wytch? But this timid looking girl didn’t seem capable of dark magic; she looked terrified of her own shadow. Nevertheless, Asha descended the iron steps quickly and grasped forearms with her. “A pleasure to make your meeting,” She said the formal wytch greeting with as much warmth as she could force into it past her own nerves. “I am Princess Asha of the Human Realms and trainee Wytch Queen of Balance.”

  The girl floundered for a second, unsure what to say, before grabbing Asha’s arm a little more firmly and introducing herself. “And I am Masozi, former Princess of Clan Iceblood and I guess I’m the trainee Wytch Queen of War.”

  An ice-fey like Keenan? Asha quickly realised that the girl must be full blooded if the electric-blue dragonfly wings on her back were anything to go by. She even had some of Keenan’s characteristics, so perhaps the two were related.

  “Well this is all very well and good, but we have little time for idle chit chat.” Silver quickly displayed her usual lack of patience for small talk. “Masozi in order to come with me you will have to swear never to betray me or my location in front of the Ancients, otherwise you will remain here.”

  Masozi was quiet for a long time, and Silver obviously became bored within the first thirty seconds of waiting, yet Asha watched the girl’s face as she thought through all of the implications of the vow.

  “Okay,” She began in that surprisingly deep voice of hers, “I vow to the Ancients not to betray you or your location,”

  “Wonderful.” Silver replied with a typical brusqueness. “I shall hold you to your vow. Now let us depart.” She conjured a portal and walked straight through leaving Asha and Masozi to follow her.

  “Don’t worry,” Asha tried to reassure her new fellow wytchling. “I know Aunt Silver can seem a little… uncaring most of the time, but once you’ve sworn your loyalty to her she usually warms up to you a little bit.”

  Masozi was still staring at the portal in absolute terror. “Where are we going?” She asked.

  “Silver lives in the fortress of Dalmorin,” Asha told her. “It’s a dwarven fortress where they mine iron, coal and some precious metals.”

  “Are there going to be more demons?” The girl whispered.

  “They’re nothing to fear.” Asha quickly reassured her. “Silver has them on a tight leash; they won’t attack you or any of her allies.” She reached down and took the girl’s fragile looking hand. “If we don’t follow her quickly enough it will annoy her.” She said quickly. “Our survival in the Dark Coven depends on making sure we do everything she asks of us.”

  Without giving Masozi time to back out, she gently pulled her through the portal, appearing in the living quarters of Dalmorin.

  None of Silver’s other allies were there, and perhaps that was for the best. Masozi hardly needed to meet more people than necessary before she had at least gotten used to this strange new place.

  “How did it go?” Romana asked, clearly still thinking Asha was going to tell Silver she wanted to leave.

  “Silver has another student.” Asha began. “She’s fey, but she’s so small and terrified, I have to take care of her.”

  She could feel her mother’s pride and happiness across the bond. “I am glad you have a friend, and I am sure this girl could not have asked for a more loyal protector. If she’s a wytch that means she’s been cast out from the fey islands, so be careful with her. Just be careful not to let your aunt see her as a weakness, or you know things will go downhill.”

  “I won’t mama.” Asha replied with more conviction than she actually felt. “Masozi and I are going to be the most brilliant wytches in both the covens.”

  Her mother said goodbye with a mental embrace that reassured Asha more than any of the things she had said to Masozi and which allowed her to meet her aunt’s raised eyebrow with a defiant glare.

  There was a moment of silence, during which Asha sensed Silver was passing some sort of judgement about the two of them.

  “Asha, you know where your rooms are, place Masozi in the room across the hall from you; Lena should have already made it up. You are in charge of getting her settled in, I shall meet you back here at dusk when we shall return to the temple for your lessons.”

  Her aunt did her usual heel-turn and left the room without any sentimental goodbyes as usual.

  Silver was gone, a flash of platinum blonde hair disappearing after her told Asha Keenan had been listening in. She turned to face Masozi. It was only then she realised that the girl was actually quite dirty, her translucent frost white skin smeared with grime and her clothes made of simple and badly stained cotton. Whatever casting out meant to the fey, it appeared Masozi hadn’t dealt with it well.

  “Come on,” Asha said, “We’ll get you cleaned up. The rooms here are pretty nice, and Lena – my aunt’s housekeeper – will have already made one up especially for you.”

  She led the girl through the caves, pointing out rooms and the forbidden areas for her. “In general, Silver likes me to stay out of sight of visitors unless she expressly says otherwise.” Asha said.

  “You’ve been here before?” Masozi asked, and Asha realised that some of what she had been saying must have only just sunk in past the terror.

  “My mother and father realised I have a strange link to my aunt, which means I dream her memories.” Asha explained. “They sent me to live with her a while ago, and the plan was for me to come here every other year, but I made a bargain with my grandmother who is an Ancient. She gave me wings in exchange for me growing to my maturity earlier than usual. Now I’m studying with the Dark Coven for my first six months of wytch training, after that I’ll be in the Light Coven for the same amount of time. My destiny is to become the bridge between the two.” Masozi just gaped at her, and Asha felt the need to change the subject. “This is my room,” She said, pointing to the last door on the left of the hallway, “Aunt Silver sleeps in that one, when she sleeps at all.” She pointed to the black door at the very end of the hallway. “And yours will be this one.” She pointed to the one directly opposite her own and opened the door.

  They walked into a room decorated in deep swathes of midnight blue streaked with waves of pastel colours. In the corner, steam rose from behind a screen, and Asha realised the brownie had drawn up a bath for Masozi.

  “There’s a bath for you over there.” Asha informed her. “I don’t know if Lena will have had time to get you any new clothes, so would you like to borrow some of mine? They’re wytch clothes made by the thread wytch Joanna, you can tell them to become any clothes you can imagine and they’ll change to it.”

  Masozi nodded mutely, looking at the bamboo screen with trepidation.

  “Do you want me to st
ay while you get changed?” Asha asked, “It’s fine if you want some time to yourself to get used to everything, I’ll just leave the clothes on the bed for you.” She let go of the tiny girl’s hand to open her satchel.

  There was a light tug on her arm, and she looked down, her height meaning she seemed to tower over Masozi, who couldn’t have been more than five feet tall.

  “Stay, please.” She whispered, “I don’t want to be alone in this place just yet.”

  Asha smiled, “That’s alright. I’m sure Lena will bring in some food for us soon, you can meet her then, she’s absolutely lovely, and so is her husband Acis.”

  Masozi nodded, and Asha handed her the wytch clothes from her bag. The waif of a girl seemed to float as she moved towards the steaming bath and threw the bundle of white cloth over the screen, pulling it around to give her privacy.

  “So I noticed you have wings.” Asha began, talking mostly to cover up the awkward sounds of her new friend getting undressed and into the water. “Can you fly yet? I am trying to persuade Aunt Silver to teach me.”

  “A little,” The distance meant Masozi had to speak above a whisper and Asha decided she found the uncommon deepness of her voice pleasing to the ear. “Mostly I try to keep them hidden; people on the continent don’t seem to take well to seeing people who are different from them.”

  “That’s just because they’re ignorant.” Asha said confidently. “Aunt Silver uses her wings in battle, they can cut people in half, or so I’ve heard.

  “Is she really your aunt?” Masozi asked quietly.

  “She’s my mother’s half-sister.” Asha confirmed. “Technically Silver is also princess of the elven kingdom as well because before she was reincarnated she was sister to King Endis, which makes him technically my uncle.”

  “Are your grandparents really Ancients?” The next words were said with a hushed reverence.”

  “Yes, they’re a bit bossy sometimes but otherwise they’re just like really powerful wytches.”