“It’s why the Academy has so many restrictions and secrets. True students learn early on how important it is to have self-control. It’s one of the reasons Viala’s rising so quickly has always bothered me. It’s not like them to allow that. But she has always found a way to get around the rules, and for some reason, they let her. Not only that, it’s expensive. I always wondered how she was able to pay for her exams. Now I know. She had powerful backers.” I sit quietly, watching him work and thinking about what he’s said. After a while, Rian pauses from his note taking and tilts his head to one side, offering me a half-grin.
“Are you going to stay fairy sized? I thought the first thing you’d do when you got back would be to ask me to grow you up again.” I blink up at him. With my thoughts so full, it completely slipped my mind.
“Actually, yes, please!” I say, hopping down from my perch on a book spine.
“Oh, I don’t know,” his grin widens. “I kind of like you pocket-sized.” He offers me his hand, palm-up, and I climb into it.
“Don’t tease, Rian!” I chuckle at his mockingly serious expression as he ponders changing me back.
“Are you sure? I could make a little pouch for around my neck and carry you with me wherever I go. You’d be up high all of the time. You’d love it, I promise.” He wriggles his brow at me teasingly.
“Rian...” I wrinkle my nose at him in a very Flit-like manner.
“Oh, you’re no fun.” He cups his hand over me gently and lowers me to the floor. “I could teach you to do it yourself, now that you’re a Novice. Then you could grow and shrink whenever you’d like.”
“No,” I say straight away. I don’t even need to think about it. After what I’ve just seen, I want no part of magic. “No thank you. Please just do it.” I close my eyes and hear him murmur his spell, and I feel myself stretching up again. When I open them, I’m back to my own height. Almost. “Wasn’t I a little taller?” I ask him, coming to his side. I put my hand on top of my head and move it in a line to his shoulder. “I used to come at least to your chin, Rian!”
“Maybe I’ve grown,” he winks.
“Come on...”
“Oh, all right.” He wiggles his fingers and I shoot up another hand span.
“That’s better.” I smooth my braid and peer over his shoulder at his work. A glimmer of gold draws my gaze to the polished red tablet, where the swirling lines are beginning to form script. “Rian,” I whisper, and nod to it as a single word forms.
“Sunset.” It reads. Rian and I look at each other and then back to the tablet again.
“Should we reply?” I lean over it and watch as the words fade away. Rian does the same.
“Probably not,” he says. “It’s most likely the Sorcerers in the keep who are doing the writing, not the ruined fairies in Sunteri. Remember what the slab said to them? The ones crouched under the trees? It said ‘not long now.’ I expect that the Sorcerers are using that stolen magic to break their way into Kythshire. They need its magic now that their own is nearly depleted. They mean to steal it for themselves, and possibly for all of Zhaghen.
“Viala has been researching our Wellspring and the borders of Kythshire for quite a while now.” He gestures to the array of torn pages and books strewn across the table. “I’m sure she’s told them everything there is to know about it. That’s why they paid her way to study at our Academy. They were using her to infiltrate our libraries and gather as much information as she could about our source.” He picks up one of the books, a small, leather-bound journal filled with scarlet ink, and thumbs through it. “She writes that she eventually realized their dark intentions. She figured out exactly what they were using her for and tried to refuse to help them after that, and that was when they took her family.”
“How horrible...” I trail off, shaking my head.
“Don’t feel sorry for her, Azi,” Rian says sternly as he tosses the journal back onto the table. “Have you forgotten she wants to kill you? She already tried once.” He clenches his jaw as his eyes flash cold, but then he closes them and takes a deep settling breath, and I can see the discipline he mentioned earlier as his features settle back to calm again.
“I should have been able to tell that she was in my head,” I shake my head. “I was so determined that jumping off the wall would make everything right.” He places his fingertips under my chin gently and tilts it up to look at him.
“Sorcery,” he says. “Mind control is a branch of magic Cerion’s Mages never dare cross into. Viala has shown us exactly how far she’s willing to go.” He looks down at the tablet, now blank. The lines swirl again and then return to form the same word.
“So it’s sunset. What do they want?” I wonder as I slip my arms around him. When he does the same, his touch sends a rush of warmth through me. I sigh and lean into him.
“They’re just checking in on her, I imagine. To make sure she’s doing as she’s told.”
“Sunset. They gave her until tomorrow at sunset to get rid of the protectors.” I sigh and think of the pathetic bundles wrapped in the roots of the trees. Rian slides his page of notes to cover the slab just as Mouli bustles in with a tray of something that’s still sizzling. My mouth instantly waters as the aroma of roasted fish and root vegetables drifts over us.
“Oh, Azi, wonderful! You’re back in time for dinner.” She sets the tray on the table and beams at me, opening her arms for a hug. I slip from Rian’s arms a little reluctantly to accept hers. “Oh, dear,” she tsks as she squeezes my shoulders, “Don’t you two eat while you’re out doing whatever it is you’ve been doing? Sit down, sit down. I’ll fix you up with this and bring out seconds. Honestly!” She shakes her head as she sets out the plates, murmuring to herself. “Make me look bad, walking through the city looking like two starved strays!” She scoops a generous helping onto my plate, “Clothes hanging off of you...” she plucks at my tunic and pauses, rubbing the fabric between her fingers. “This isn’t one I bought you, is it?” Rian and I exchange a glance.
“No,” I shove a heaping portion of fish into my mouth to distract her, “Mmm... sho good.” I say.
“Don’t talk with your mouth full.” She scolds me with a swat before she turns to Rian and prods him. “You, too! Eat!” She stands over him until he takes a bite to placate her and nods appreciatively, and then she rushes off to the kitchen again.
When she’s gone, Rian pushes his plate aside and smoothes the map of the Known Lands surrounding Cerion. It’s covered with a thin sheet of tissue which he has marked with the path that Elliot and I took on our journey. He circles Zhaghen and then draws a line back to Cerion, along the Trade Road, through the mountains of Cerion Proper, and then circles Bane’s Pass. He draws a square and labels it “Keep/Crag?” I look at the map while he draws and realize something isn’t quite right.
“How can that be?” I ask as I lean over to look. Bane’s Pass, where we entered the keep with the Sorcerers, is in a deep ravine. According the map, one side of the ravine is bordered by a great lake and the other side is bordered by a channel of sea that separates it from Kythshire. It doesn’t meet up with Kythshire on the map the way it did when Elliot and I were there. “It’s wrong. It just shows water between Bane’s Pass and Kythshire.”
“Not wrong,” Rian glances to the doorway and pulls his plate back. He takes several large mouthfuls in quick succession, just as Mouli reappears with another tray. She examines our plates and nods her approval as she serves a bowl of warm honey breads and soft cheese. I snatch one up quickly and spread it with cheese and take a bite that melts on my tongue like a cloud. When I look up at Mouli to offer my appreciation, I find her staring at Rian’s marks on the map with a worried expression. She forces a smile when our eyes meet, and then she rushes out of the hall again. Rian is too focused on the map too notice. “Sorcery. That’s the only way to explain it. There are six of them. It’s certainly possible.”
“What is?” I ask. He draws a line connecting Bane’s Pass to Kythshire.<
br />
“The map is off, like you said. Only it wasn’t drawn wrong. They changed the landscape.” He shakes his head in awe. “I’ve only read about it in theory. No one has ever dared try it, as far as I know.” He presses his fingertips to his brow and shakes his head. “Azi, if they succeed, if they succeed in entering Kythshire, if they claim the Wellspring, everything we know will be destroyed. They won’t stop there. They’ll take Ceras’lain, and Cerion, and Haltil...and everything else within their reach. And everything will be within their reach, believe me.”
“How can we stop them?”
“With help,” he says. “And stealth. It’s already been set up for us, thanks to my da. Your father is moving here.” He taps the map. My eyes follow the line of the trade road that leads to Bane’s Pass, down which my father was leading a battalion of the king’s guard. I imagine him and his twenty men clashing against the countless skeletal sentries at the keep.
“Rian, they can’t!” I shake my head, “they’ll be outnumbered ten-to-one!” He draws another line, this one a route from Kythshire’s border to Bane’s Pass.
“Not with the guild beside them. Your uncle alone could take out half of those sentries with his siege magic.”
“They were trailing Redemption, though,” I say.
“I know,” he rests his chin in his hand and studies the map thoughtfully. “Da didn’t show us about our guild or Redemption, which means whatever they’re doing now isn’t something we need to concern ourselves with. He only showed us what we need to know to make a plan.”
“Which is what, exactly, then?”
“Well,” Rian holds up his hand and starts ticking off the list on his fingers, “You swore to the king that you’d stop Eron’s plotting with Viala as quietly as possible. We swore to the f—uh, anyway, we swore that we’d strip Viala if we saw good reason to, which we have, definitely.” He taps another finger, “and obviously, being the only ones who can move unseen within the Keep, we’re going to have to be the ones to stop the Sorcerers.”
“Oh, obviously. So, nothing too harrowing, then.” I groan and rake my fingers through my hair as he pats my shoulder reassuringly.
“We’ll have help, remember. The others will be here at moonrise. But I think our first step should be to figure out a way to rescue Viala’s family. Sunset tomorrow is the most pressing deadline we have right now.”
“You don’t want to strip her first?” I ask. Rian slides the map away and nibbles on a bite of his roll silently. “You think,” I offer quietly, “if we save her family, we might be able to save her, too, don’t you?” I shake my head, smelling the sea air and seeing the crisp blue line of the horizon stretched out before me as I step forward on the cliff wall. I see her kissing Eron’s jaw in the royal sitting room, the black tendrils of the Mark displayed proudly on her bare arms. I watch her pinch Flit by the wings and eye her greedily, see the dagger driven through her wings at the desk, watch as she’s drained of her vibrant color. All of it swirls before me as clearly in my memory as if it’s happening again, right now. My eyes narrow and flood with tears. How could he possibly want to help her? I’m so angry I can’t even look at him.
“Maybe,” he answers gently. “Who are we to decide who’s worth saving and who’s worth punishing? What would you have done in such a desperate situation? Can you honestly say that you wouldn’t do everything in your power to help the ones you love?” I realize I’m gripping the edge of the bench so hard my knuckles have gone white.
“She was plotting well before they had their hands on her family, Rian. Margy said she had her claws in the Prince back when he took his tour of Ceras’lain and crossed into Kythshire. Do you honestly think that sparing her will be enough to change her heart? Did you forget what she did to poor Flit? Some people are beyond help. She controlled me despite your sleep spell, Rian! Even unconscious, she’s dangerous. How is that even possible?”
“My sleep is a weak spell, compared to her Circle,” Rian sighs, “In theory, it really shouldn’t have even stuck. I was surprised when it did, but it’s not as strong as when I put it on your father. There are gaps. I suppose that’s the easiest way to explain it.” He frowns, “If she tries hard enough, she can push out of it. She already did, really. That’s how she was able to feed you suggestions. It’s amazing, really.”
“Well, that should make you want to strip her even more!” I shove away from the table and get up. His sudden admiration of her skills turns my stomach. I’m so angry I don’t even want to sit beside him anymore.
“Azi, you’ve seen firsthand what she can do. She’s got incredible talent. If we could convince her to see our side of things--“
“You want to ally with her? After everything we’ve seen? Are you serious?”
“I am, if you’d just listen to me!” He slams a fist onto the table. “She could be an asset to us! If we could rescue her loved ones and bring them back here, then she might be out for revenge. Actually, we could take her with us to Sunteri. I bet she knows a way. If we could succeed in that, then she might help us against the Sorcerers. She’s powerful, so powerful.” His eyes grow distant and unfocused as he gazes past me into the fire. “She knows things.” He picks up the worn journal and tosses it to me, “Maybe if you picked up a book once in a while you’d have a clue!” His words hit me like a punch to the stomach, and I have to stop myself from doubling over from their cruelty when the journal thumps my chest. I catch it, wide-eyed.
“Listen to yourself, Rian. This isn’t you. You’re not making any sense.”
“I’m making perfect sense to anyone with half a brain,” his tone is filled with disdain as he shoves his plate away. His hand flashes with blue-white energy that crackles in the air, leaving the scent of a lightning strike thick in the air around us. He pauses for a moment as he looks down and flexes his fingers, and then he turns away from me and speaks with a warning tone, “Azi. Get out.” The lightning charges up his arm and he clenches his fist. I back toward the door as he hugs his arms around himself, locked in an inward battle.
“It’s her, isn’t it? She’s doing this.”
“I’ll kill you,” he says. “Go! Lock the door behind you!” He doubles over and grits his teeth as the energy crackles around him again. I take another step away and my gaze rests on the red slab on the table beside him. A fleeting thought enters my mind. I should take it with me. Take it, and bring it to the Academy. Bring it back, it doesn’t belong to us. It belongs to Viala. I blink. Her name sends a flood of realization through me that breaks her hold. I cross the room and take Rian by the shoulders.
“Look at me,” I say, ignoring the burn of the charge that surges into my hands as we touch. I don’t pull away. Instead I grip harder, shaking him gently. “Look, Rian.” His hazel eyes meet mine distantly at first and then slowly come into focus. The connection between us grounds him, and eventually the crackling energy fades until it’s gone completely.
“I’m so sorry,” he whispers as he draws me to the bench and we cling to each other. “We’ve got to end this. She’s so subtle we don’t even see it coming. So dangerous. As soon as the moon rises and they get here, we’ll go straight to the dormitories and get started. In the meantime, we need a stronger ward.” He tightens his embrace and begins to whisper an intricate spell over us both, and I bury my head into the hollow of his shoulder as the air shimmers and settles around us.
“Huhem.” Luca clears his throat from the doorway. Something rattles in the heavy sack that’s slung over his shoulder as he crosses to us. He slides one hand between us, pushing Rian’s shoulder gently a hand’s length from mine, then wiggles a finger at our legs, which are pressed together on the bench. We scoot away from each other and he eyes us, assessing our new proximity. “That’s better. I’m watching you two. You especially,” he points a crooked finger at Rian.
“Yes, sir,” Rian nods gravely, but when Luca turns away he presses his lips together to keep from laughing, and I shake my head and cover my smile. We wait u
ntil he’s gone through the training square and then he slides close to me again. “Everything we’re going through and his biggest concern is with you and me...” he trails off. I try to ignore the bloom of red that has spread across his cheeks all the way to the tips of his ears. “Anyway.” he clears his throat and I press my fingertips to my own hot cheeks.
“I wonder if the moon is up yet.” I offer quickly, jumping up to rush to the training square where the ceiling opens up into the overcast sky. “I think it’s going to rain,” I call in to him.
“Azi!” Flit’s tiny voice squeals as she crashes into my neck. Her arms stretch as far as they can around my jawline and squeeze, and colorful prisms of light flash and dance before my eyes.
“Flit!” I laugh and reach up to pat her, but she’s gone from my shoulder in a blink and then she’s standing person-sized before me, just a bit shorter than I am. Her eyes dance from yellow to blue to green and I have to close mine against her gleam.
“That’s better.” She laughs as she throws her arms around me in a tight embrace. “Oh, and I got another T, so it’s Flitt now.” She giggles. “T for Teeming. I got it just now, and Crocus gave me these, too!” She steps back from me and I try to look, but she’s glowing so brightly that I’m mostly blinded as she turns her shoulders away from me. I raise a hand to shield myself from the light but it does little good.
Call of Kythshire (Keepers of the Wellsprings Book 1) Page 30