Winter Queen

by Erica Marie Hogan

  You will find the strength to keep at peace. You will find the patience to be silent. The time is coming swiftly now, Adlae Sundragon. You will not need to wait much longer.

  Adlae’s feet hissed against the dusty stone as she made her way down to the armory. She would find Brecken Jandry there, she was certain. The princess, Damari Kael, had been very forthcoming about the locations and habits of Brecken and Brae Jandry, something Adlae was grateful for beyond words. The young woman might turn out to be her first ally here, despite being the sister of the one she despised. There was something special about Damari Kael, and Adlae was determined to find out the girl’s secrets before this was over.

  Steel clanging on steel drew her around the corner, her memories guiding her where she needed to go. If she continued down this narrow hall, she would come to a door which would take her directly into the city. Following the path from there, she would find herself at the barracks, where Damari claimed her sister Brae lived with her husband and child. The thought of her sister being reduced to a small apartment in the army barracks twisted her stomach. This pretender king had not only wanted to be rid of any threat to his throne, but he’d also been determined to humiliate her sister in every way possible. Forcing her to marry Brecken Jandry was only part of the punishment, one her sister had found a way to turn into joy. But not allowing his captain to move his small family from the barracks to decent apartments nearer the Blood Keep was Roderick’s way of keeping Brae in her new station. Adlae knew if his captain had married anyone else, they would not be forced to live in such conditions.

  Her hands fisted at her sides, but she resisted the anger within, remembering Winter’s words. She would find the strength to be at peace in all this. She would find the patience to be silent. Adlae flexed her fingers, smoothing her palms down the front of her skirt as she stopped at the armory door.

  Crouching under the low, arched doorway, she went down two steps into the large room where the soldiers trained. She saw the one she sought immediately, standing with his back to her and his sword upraised. The sharp steel pointed at the ceiling, glittering in the rays of sunlight shining through the windows in front of him. The hilt was inlaid with red and black jewels, the steel engraved with his family name in dark, intricate letters.

  Adlae tilted her head and smiled, remembering her own sword which still hung above the hearth of her old room. More than anything, she wanted to pick it up; to weigh it in her palms as she used to and to remember being a Sword Maiden of Sunkai. So long since she’d taken up the sword—since she’d defended what was hers. Adlae shook her head, removing the doubts plaguing her as she took another step forward.

  “Brecken Jandry,” she whispered his name.

  Brecken turned abruptly, lowering his sword to his side as he bowed low. “Your Majesty.”

  “I did not mean to startle you.” Adlae began to circle him, looking him up and down.

  He was wearing what she assumed were his household colors, brown and gold with the panther signet of the king stitched onto his left shoulder near his heart. Adlae tilted her head, wondering how a man like Brecken could follow a king like Roderick Kael.

  “How may I serve, Your Majesty?” he asked, keeping his back straight and his eyes forward.

  “I wish to walk about the city. I hoped to have an armed guard accompany me. I understand Sunkai is not always safe, not even under sunlight.”

  “His Grace the King has made the city as safe as he can. But old loyalties do not die easily.” Brecken’s jaw tightened. “I would be honored to escort you through the city myself, Winter Queen.”

  “Thank you.” She reached out a hand to the display of swords along the wall. “Tell me, Captain, is it common for the name of Sundragon never to be uttered even in remembrance? Is it truly a law of the city?”

  “There are no more Sundragons,” Brecken replied sternly. “Therefore, there is no need for his name to be spoken. We have our king and to speak of the old is considered treasonous.”

  “Yet your king is not mine, so I will speak.” Adlae turned to him, looking directly into his eyes. “The Creator was displeased with your king for his actions against the Sundragon. Vihaan Sundragon was disposed of as a worthless king when he was the chosen one of the Creator to lead the people of Nfaros from the clutches of cruelty. You must have seen how the people have suffered at the hands of the man they now call king. The man they trusted with their hearts and lives when he first took this city.”

  “I cannot speak of such things,” Brecken hissed, glaring. “You should not either.”

  “I am not subjected to his wrath.” Adlae tilted her chin up, feeling the magic swirling within her blood as a storm awoke inside her. She resisted, refusing to let him see the anger. “There are many rulers of this vast kingdom, Brecken Jandry, and Roderick Kael was never meant to be one of them.”

  “Yet he sits upon the throne as my king.” Brecken squared his shoulders. “I will not, cannot, speak against him, Your Highness.”

  “Of course, I expected nothing less from you.” Adlae sighed. “Loyalty is in your blood, Brecken Jandry. But I see doubt in your eyes. You are a good man.”

  She brushed passed him, hesitating at the door to look over her shoulder. “I will wait for you at the Blood Keep gate. I wish to visit the army barracks first, to bless the children there.”

  Brecken bowed at the waist, and Adlae left him, her heart racing as she followed the hall back the way she’d come. She had planted the seed of doubt in his heart ... now to watch it grow.

  Adlae hummed softly, blocking out the pestering voice of Winter as she walked the streets beside Brecken. Winter was troubled since they left the Blood Keep, chattering brainlessly in Adlae’s ears. Nothing she said was making any sense, and Adlae had chosen not to listen as she followed closely at Brecken’s back while he attempted to make a path for her through the crowded marketplace.

  Men and women alike called out their stores from their carts and stalls, brightly colored materials flashing as they displayed them. The scent of fresh fruit and vegetables perfumed the air. They passed the blacksmiths’ corner, turning to be assaulted with calls from the silversmiths. Adlae couldn’t help smiling. She’d forgotten what the Sunkai marketplace could be like in the middle of the day; how busy it was and how determined the merchants were to sell their wares. They didn’t mind standing in the middle of the road, snatching at passersby’s sleeves and shouting what they had to offer at the top of their lungs.

  Brecken mumbled to himself, clearly annoyed with the people who attempted to stop them, some of them even falling to their knees to respect the Winter Queen. Adlae could feel the crowd thicken around them when first they stepped into the marketplace. Brecken wanted to take her a different route, through an alley and up the steps to the High Village, where there was little activity at high sun times as the nobles were resting in their homes during the heat. Now, when the sun was at its peak in the sky, the people suffered most. This endless summer had been hard on them; she could see the results.

  Without the changing of the seasons, without the presence of winter’s coming chill, the plants hadn’t grown properly. Even the rains had been warm—humid rains that made the leaves wilt and the vegetables bitter. Adlae had little choice in the matter. She’d only known all these years she could not reveal herself to Sunkai, to anyone, until the time was right. Now was the time—for now, Roderick Kael believed himself undefeatable. Allowing him to believe she was going to bless his reign with a long and cold winter had only increased his arrogance.

  As I intended. Adlae smirked, but quickly wiped the expression from her face when she saw Brecken looking. She could not afford for him to begin asking probing questions.

  “Do you wish to take a different path, Your Highness?” Brecken inquired, slowing his pace until she came to walk at his side.

  “If we continue this way, we will pass the docks, yes?” Adlae
tilted her head.

  “Yes. They are rough this time of day.” Brecken started to steer her away.

  “I would like to see them.” Adlae resisted, darting around him to hurry in the opposite direction. “I have not been near the sea in a long time, Brecken Jandry.”

  “As you wish.” Brecken exhaled, his hand tightening around his sword hilt. “But stay close. There have been many ships coming in from the Mountain Countries. Those veiled people disturb our city in many ways.”

  “All creatures are made by the Creator, Brecken Jandry. Sunkai should welcome them, not fear them if they have posed no threat,” Adlae murmured gently. “Just as we did when the Eventide Sisters first crossed the sea from Draedin. They have become our allies now for the kindness we showed to all creatures of magic.”

  Brecken frowned, his gaze clouding with thought. Adlae smiled, stepping ahead of him a pace or two as the city thinned, opening into the streets leading to the docks. The area bustled with people and three new ships slowly making their way into port, searching for a decent place to anchor. Adlae pressed a hand to her suddenly racing heart as her eyes fell upon the fluttering masts, trembling flags and a multitude of colors flashing here and there across the docks. She’d forgotten how beautiful this part of the city was, as people from across the country gathered here to trade their wares and visit the greatest city in Nfaros.

  Adlae’s eyes glistened as her feet scraped against the rough dock where Brecken had led her, glaring at anyone who looked at her twice. She wished she had the power to reach out to these strangers, to shake their hands and welcome them to her city. But this was not her place, her duty; the welcome was the king’s duty to confer.

  Yet he is not here. Adlae’s anger awoke inside her again and she stomped upon the emotion, knowing now was not the time.

  Look there, Winter’s voice broke through the wall she’d put up. A veiled woman with furs wrapped tightly around her. She is one of the Mountain People.

  Adlae turned in the direction Winter prompted her. Tilting her head, she saw the woman, sitting on a crate near the deck’s edge. Her dark veil obscured her face, making any features underneath unrecognizable. She looked to be waiting for someone—her head bowed so she would not make eye contact with anyone and her furs wrapped tightly around her, despite the heat of the day. Adlae frowned, tilting her head as she approached the woman.

  Beneath the furs, she could see the hem of her simple, brown woolen dress with matching soft slippers on her feet. She had seen the Mountain People only a few times before she was forced to leave Sunkai those many years ago, and never did they reveal their faces. Only their men, who stood taller than any in Nfaros, revealed their faces to the outside world.

  Adlae stopped at the woman’s feet, folding her hands in front of her. The veiled head tilted back to look at her. Adlae wished she could see her expression, wondering what this strange creature thought of Adlae’s ageless face and long white hair. From those foreigners who did not know who and what she was, she often received strange looks. One look at her and all knew she was a creature of magic, but in some parts of their vast world, winter simply didn’t exist.

  “What is your name?” Adlae broke the silence.

  “Navaria,” the little woman answered in a trembling voice.

  “Are you here alone, Navaria?” Adlae crouched in front of her. “Do you need assistance?”

  Navaria’s shoulders began to tremble as Adlae leaned closer, her breath unsettling the veil.

  “I am not alone,” Navaria replied. “My companion is still on board.”

  “You should not sit alone on the docks, my lady,” Adlae commented, looking warily at the swarthy groups of men who wandered these walkways.

  “You are the Winter Queen,” Navaria said. “I have heard many stories about you. They are true then. You have come to bring winter to Nfaros.”

  “I have.” Adlae nodded.

  Navaria’s head swayed back and forth, as though searching to see if anyone was watching them. “Could you tell me—?”

  “Step aside!”

  Adlae straightened quickly, stumbling back as the large man stormed across the dock. He hovered over Navaria, his sword drawn as he glared down at Adlae. Half his scalp was shaven of the thick, silver hair which fell in waves over the other side of his head. His dark eyes burned her and, for a moment, his pupils seemingly shifted into horizontal lines and back.

  “Krow,” Navaria hissed, rising slowly to her feet to grab his bare arm.

  “No,” the man called Krow growled at her. “You know what she can do.”

  “Your Majesty.” Brecken appeared at her side. “Is something wrong?”

  “Move along, little man,” Krow snapped at him. “We are not here for you. And keep that winter witch away from my lady.”

  “Krow, stop!” Navaria tugged on his arm.

  “I meant no harm.” Adlae stepped in, trying to move around Brecken’s shoulder. “I meant only to help.”

  “She doesn’t need your help!” Krow launched forward, and Brecken’s sword flashed.

  Adlae stumbled backward and fell with a grunt to the dock. As she looked up at the men facing off, the clash of their swords against each other echoed in her ears. Her hands pressed into the uneven surface, fear rising inside of her so swiftly a circle of ice crashed across the dock all around her. Curling her hand, she looked down, watching as the staff formed. The implement coiled in the curve of her fingers, solid ice stretching and crackling until matching her own height, the top curving into a perfect ball of clear glass, vines of ice curling around it.

  Rising slowly, she lifted the staff up before slamming the end down with a sharp thud. The wind itself seemed to part, ice bits scattering across the ground. Adlae looked up at the two soldiers, only to find they had not moved, their gazes still intense on one another and their swords ready.

  “Brecken Jandry, lower your sword!” Adlae ordered, raising the staff once more. Brecken stepped back on her command, but he did not put his sword away.

  “Cease, Krow!” Navaria stepped in also, her hand still gripping the man’s arm. “We have not come to bring quarrel to this city.”

  Krow looked down at her before he twirled the blade in his hand, sliding the weapon quickly back into his scabbard.

  “Apologies.” Krow bowed slightly.

  “Go about your business,” Brecken responded, returning his own sword cautiously to his sheath. “If ever you threaten another of this city again, you will have the king’s men to deal with.”

  “We will cause no trouble, good sir,” Navaria purred. “We meant the Winter Queen no disrespect.”

  “Let us leave them in peace, Brecken Jandry,” Adlae whispered, taking his arm.

  Brecken nodded but did not look away from the strangers even as they walked away. Once they were off the docks, he turned back, his eyes casting upon the staff she now held. Frowning he looked down at her.

  “Where ...?”

  “The staff came to me,” Adlae murmured, almost as perplexed as he. “I do not know why.”

  You have created the staff. Winter’s voice returned once more, taking her mind from the encounter on the docks. The weapon will bring you much power in the days to come, but be wary. Such power can be poisonous.

  “And did you have one?” Adlae whispered, but she knew Brecken heard when he looked at her strangely.

  Yes. But that is a story not to be told, one even you cannot discover in our endless bond. Winter’s shudder filled her, and she gripped the staff tighter. The staff is a cruel thing you now carry, Adlae. But it is because of these strangers that it has come to you. Watch them and take care, we do not know what hides behind Navaria’s veil.

  Adlae nodded, glancing over her shoulder. But the strangers were nowhere to be seen.

  “You should not have spoken to her!” Krow bellowed as he followed Navari
a quickly down the street.

  Navaria ignored the stares of the strange people of Sunkai as they passed through the marketplace. Ripples of cold rushed over her, and she pulled the furs tighter around her little body. These people walked with their arms bared, and the children ran in their bare feet. They did not understand the warmth their sun lacked; they did not feel the cold in the air as she did. Even one dripped with sweat, and Navaria almost laughed at the sight. What did he know of heat? Yet his body reacted to this weak sun as though it were as hot as Hadroul’s Mountain.

  “She is a queen of this land, Krow. We are to befriend all who step in our path, not raise a sword against them,” Navaria answered calmly, despite the cold that caused her teeth to chatter.

  “She could have killed you!” Krow grabbed her arm, spinning her around to stare down into her eyes. “By being so close to you, she could have ... I cannot ... will not ... if anything happens to you, Navaria ...”

  “Hush.” She placed her fingers lightly against his lips. “Nothing will happen to me, Krow. We will find this Blood Keep, and we will engage Damari Kael’s interest. Then we will take her back to our lands where she belongs.”

  “Taking her will not be so easy. Not with the king’s captain watching us.” Krow rested his hand against the back of her shoulder, pressing her forward.

  “The fault is yours that he will watch. But if we gain the trust of the king, then he will not question. There is loyalty in his heart, I saw it.”

  “And the Winter Queen? What did your Gift say of her?” Krow lowered his voice, hunching forward to speak with her in whispers.

  Navaria eyed him curiously, wondering why he would ask such a question. Krow never asked her what her Gift told her, she only offered, as was supposed right. But here, in this strange land, Krow had only the option to live by her word and what her Gift proclaimed. Yet sharing everything she’d seen about the Keeper of Winter turned her stomach. Krow didn’t have to know all she’d seen; he did not have to know what the future held for her and this Winter Queen.