She opened her eyes wide and tightened her fingers around his. “We won’t leave you here to fight that monster by yourself.”
“I’m sorry, my love, but you won’t have a choice. I’ve already made arrangements with Chisholm. He and Pernus have picked out ten soldiers they trust. Depending on the situation, you’ll go with Chisholm and those men.”
“But won’t it be more dangerous outside Bayerlon’s walls?”
Edmund opened his mouth to answer, but Elphus yelled, “No!” The realmist opened his eyes and looked around until his gaze met Edmund’s.
“Are you okay, Elphus?” Edmund asked.
“Yes, but they were waiting. I was ambushed and only just made it out.”
“Who? You mean the gormons?”
“Yes. I’m sorry, my king, but your brother and the gormons are on their way. At the speed they’re flying, they’ll be here within two days.”
The king took a deep breath. “Well, it’s happening. We’re officially at war. Pernus and I had planned for two different scenarios, but neither one took into account that he or Arcese would be missing. If anything’s happened to the princess, the dragons will never forgive us.”
“If we live that long,” said Alaine.
Another knock and the door opened. Verity, Karin and Sarah rushed in, the princess’s face pale. She embraced her mother.
“It’s going to be okay, my darling.” Gabrielle caressed her daughter’s hair. She spoke over the top of her daughter’s head. “Alaine, Fernis, I imagine you have troops to instruct. I’m going to retire to my bedroom with these girls,” she said, indicating the new arrivals, “and we’ll await further instructions. At least we’ll all be in one place if we need to move quickly.”
The king kissed his wife on the forehead. “Thank you. I’ll come by later and—”
Footsteps scuffled in the vestibule outside the door, silencing the king.
In the midst of pushing her charges through the bedroom door, Gabrielle turned to see the guards blocking the opening. Just visible between the two soldiers was Hermas’s wispy, white hair. He was speaking to the guards and sounded out of breath. “I have urgent news for the king. You have to let me in. Now!”
The more senior of the guards answered. “Look, old man, you can’t just—”
Gabrielle ran to the doorway and pushed in between the soldiers, wrinkling her nose at the metallic smell of their armor. “Let him in. Hermas! Come in.” The queen grabbed his hand and pulled him inside.
“Thank you, Gab . . . Queen Gabrielle.” Once they were safely inside, he bowed to Edmund.
Everyone crowded around Hermas. “So,” said Edmund, “I gather you have some news.”
Hermas nodded and looked at each person in turn. “Can I speak freely?”
“Yes, Hermas. I have the feeling that the time for secrecy is past.”
“Pernus is currently holding an accomplice of Perculus in a basement at The Moonlight Inn. Arcese is keeping lookout from the rooftop. They couldn’t risk transporting the man here. It seems that Perculus has built up quite a network lately. Pernus has managed to find out that your advisor has made a deal with Leon. We’re not sure exactly what he has promised him, but he’s been digging holes in people’s backyards, making doorways to the large sewerage tunnels under the city.”
Edmund nodded slowly. “I take it those tunnels are large enough for a gormon to walk through?”
Hermas nodded.
“Well, we’ll just have to get soldiers to every site and fill in the holes.”
Gabrielle frowned. “But if the sewer system is ruined, the city will turn into a cesspool.”
Edmund turned to his wife. “You didn’t just say that, did you?”
Her cheeks flushed. “Sorry. Spoke before I thought. If the gormons get in through there, we won’t have a city left.”
“Fernis and Alaine, come with me. Hermas, you’re going to point out on the city map where all the houses are, and then we’re going to divide the city into north and south. Fernis’s troops will take the south, Alaine’s the north. Elphus, I want you to let Vellonia know our situation. See if they can spare some dragons to help.” Edmund stopped to speak to the soldiers at the door, who were standing at attention, ready to move. “You.” He pointed to the younger man who looked so young that his freckles were more dominant than his sparse facial hair. “Go to first soldier Chisholm and tell him he’s to meet me with his team at the main gates at the bottom of the city as soon as he can. He’ll know what that means.”
He spun quickly and grabbed both of Gabrielle’s arms, just below the shoulder. “Pack some clothes and a warm coat, in case you end up on a dragon—I’ve heard it’s cold up there.”
Tears welled in the queen’s eyes. Like a warm spring breaking the surface, they built up until they spilled over her lashes. She wanted to beg him to come with them, but she knew he would never abandon their people. Nausea gripped her, and she swallowed against it. “Please be careful. I love you . . . . It’s always been you. Never forget that.” She stood on tiptoes and kissed his lips, savoring the moment lest it be the last.
When they broke apart, Verity threw her arms around Edmund. “I love you, Father.”
“And I love you, my darling daughter. Look after your mother.”
Verity nodded.
“Come now,” said Gabrielle, “we have a lot to do before we leave.” Karin and Verity followed her into her room—Sarah had left to gather everything her queen would need and was already packing her own bag.
“Let’s go. We have a lot to do and not much time to do it in.” The king marched out of the room, a group of determined Talians behind him. As he hurried down the stairs, one thought dominated all others: Bring it, brother of mine. We’ll be ready.
Chapter 10
Agmunsten and his party reached the larger island safely, much to his relief. Although in a hurry, they slept from midnight until dawn, knowing they would need all their energy to last the next two days in the air.
After leaving, Arie managed to spend the whole of the day on dragonback, but at dusk, he decided he’d had enough and asked Warrimonious to drop him in the ocean. He had left his heavy jacket in his pack—it would be too hard to stay afloat if he came off Agmunsten’s creatura. That was a day and a half ago, and now Arie shivered against the welpid’s back. Any warmth the creatura could have passed on was swept away by the frigid water each time she plunged into the waves. His grip on Kaphos’s horn was weak, his fingers fatigued and cramping. Feeling that the creatura was about to dive again, Arie held his breath. As Kaphos’s head speared the water, Arie lost his hold and slid off.
Kaphos noticed immediately and returned to pick him up. She nudged the boy with her flipper. Floating on his back, arms and legs splayed out like a starfish, Arie waved her away. “I’m tired. Can’t I just float here for a while?”
We’re almost there. Can you see that outline in the distance?
Arie let his feet sink under him and climbed back onto Kaphos, just behind her head, and sat up. He looked ahead and squinted. The subtle predawn glow revealed rounded shapes that looked like giant boulders, but Arie knew they were small islands. “Just give me a minute.” He leaned down and hugged her, soaking up as much of her warmth as he could. Rubbing his face on her skin, he marveled at how soft she was. When he’d first touched her, he anticipated she would be slimy, like a fish, but her skin almost felt like a cat’s, and it was warm—something else he’d never expected.
Come on, Arie; the others are waiting for us.
“How much longer?”
About thirty minutes. Ready?
Sitting up again, he gripped her horn and tightened his legs against her sides. “Okay. Let’s do this.”
She rode above the water for a few minutes, propelling them with flippers and tail. It wasn't long before she became impatient, though, and Arie held on tighter when he felt the telltale lifting of her head. He took a breath and shut his eyes.
Thirty minutes later, Arie slid off
Kaphos and swam to the beach. Thanks, Kaphie.
My pleasure, Arie. Go and warm up. I’m off to find some fish.
The island was at least twice as big as the last one, Arie noted, and instead of being rocky, fine white sand led from the water where silver-colored grass sprouted between low, gnarled bushes. Where is everybody? he wondered as he furiously rubbed his arms, trying to warm them. Looking down, he saw smooth sand—no footprints. Is this the right island? He looked back out to sea, but Kaphos was gone. He called out in his mind-voice. Hello! Agmunsten, Astra? Where are you?
We’re here. Where are you? Agmunsten’s voice wavered with a suppressed chuckle.
I’m on the west side of the island. I’m assuming I’m at the right place, but there aren’t any signs, and I can’t see anyone.
Yes, well, we were cold and couldn’t risk lighting a fire—the smoke might be seen. This close to Zamahl, there’ll be fishermen wandering about. We’re sitting in the sun, on the eastern side of the island. I’ll send Zim around for you.
You’re cold? You should try being in the water all night. And thanks; you’re too kind.
No need to get sarcastic.
I’m bloody freezing, and my skin is even wrinklier than yours after soaking for too long. How long have you been sunning yourself?
This time the laughter came through. About thirty minutes. Had a hearty breakfast before that, and a nap. You really should hurry up—you’re missing out.
Arie was about to swear when he saw Zim approaching from the right. Deciding to stretch out the kinks and warm himself up, Arie jogged toward the black dragon.
Zim stopped and waited for Arie to catch up before leading him to their small camp.
Rounding the bend, the newly risen sun glinted off the water but didn’t heat Arie straight away. Rubbing his icy hands together, he wished it were midday.
“Arie!” Astra stood, waving her arms.
Arie waved back. “Hey!” He saw she was holding his spare dry clothes in one hand. That was incentive enough to run.
“Get those wet clothes off and we’ll put these on.”
“Thanks.” Arie grinned, peeling off his clothes as fast as he could.
Astra laughed. “You’re not shy, are you?”
“No way. I’m too cold to be shy.” Naked, he ran down the beach, back the way they had come.
Agmunsten watched as he reached the bend, stopped, basked for a minute, and then ran back. “What in the Third Realm?”
When Arie returned, he grabbed his clothes and dressed.
“What was all that about?” asked Agmunsten.
“How else was I going to dry off?”
Agmunsten shook his head. “Haven’t you learned anything I’ve been teaching you? You could have used Second-Realm power to heat yourself.”
Poking his head through his top, he stopped and looked at his mentor. “Oh, yeah, I forgot. You know, I could probably use energy from Talia, like we learnt with Arcese.”
“We do that in Zamahl.”
Agmunsten stared at Astra. “You do what?”
“We call it Energizing. We take only what we need, as you can cause a natural disaster if you take too much—remember that, Arie.” Astra looked at the boy.
“Yes ma’am.”
Agmunsten frowned, his thick gray brows drawing down. “Why did you not share this information with the academy?”
“I’ve already betrayed my country by coming to you and learning realmistry to help countries other than my own. I wasn’t going to compound the betrayal. Besides, I didn’t think you needed to know—Second-Realm power is far superior.”
While Agmunsten and Astra argued, Arie took one of his boots in each hand, reaching deep into the sand with his mind. His awareness traveled through the sand, to rock, until he found a molten river. The energy he syphoned gave up its heat as he told it what he needed. “Heat my boots until there is no moisture.” Everyone watched as steam rose into the slightly-damp morning air. “Mmm, it’s warming my hands too.”
“Useful,” said Zim. “We only used that energy for the spires. And before you start, Agmunsten, our reasons for not telling you are similar to Astra’s. You didn’t need to know, and we dragons need to have some secrets.” The black dragon smiled.
“And here I was, thinking I was the smartest person on Talia. Looks like I may have been deluding myself.” Agmunsten’s shoulders dropped.
Arie sat next to him and patted his back. “There, there. We can keep pretending if it makes you happy.”
The head realmist sniffed. “No, it’s okay. I can’t unknow it now, can I? My dreams have been shattered. Please leave me alone. I need to grieve.” He put his head in his hands, and his shoulders started shaking.
Arie looked questioningly at Zim, who shrugged. Turning back to Agmunsten, Arie tilted his head, trying to see the man’s face. “Are you okay? Look, we were just joking. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean—”
Agmunsten let out a guffaw. When he looked up, tears of mirth glistened on his cheeks. “Oh, my goodness. You should see your faces. I’m an old man—as if I care about that!” He continued to laugh.
“I think I liked you better when you were miserable.” Arie tried to be cranky, but soon they were all smiling.
Warrimonious spoke, his green scales sparking with a hint of blue, mirroring the color of the sea. “Okay, time to get serious. Arie, I want you to eat something and get some rest. We’ll be leaving at dusk—we're too close to Zamahl to risk flying during the day. The next group of islands is maybe six hours away, and then it’s another few hours to reach the mainland. We’ll have a brief stop so you can have a bathroom and food break, and then we’ll keep going. We’re so close, and we don’t have time to waste.”
Zim scratched his belly. “Hence the new plan.”
“What new plan?” asked Arie as he rifled through his pack looking for food.
The black dragon continued. “Because we don’t have time to sneak through the Zamahlan jungles and forests, we’re just going to go on in there and make a show of being powerful and superior—surprise them into siding with us. And, as much as I don’t want to, I’ll burn a few officials to ash if things come to that. We only have a limited time for diplomacy. If we can’t get the result we want in a couple of days, things are going to get nasty.”
Astra cringed. She had agreed to the plan, knowing they didn’t have a choice, but that didn’t mean she liked it. While the others lay in the sun, Astra rose. “I’m going for a walk. Be back soon.” Her mind wandered as she made her way along the sand. She’d had many dreams, and nightmares, over the years about returning to Zamahl. In some, she’d returned to open arms; in others, she’d been arrested, thrown into a dungeon and shunned by her disappointed family. Which would it be? She stopped walking, picked up a shell and threw it toward the water as far as she could. The foaming surf that washed along the reef surrounding this side of the island drowned out the “plop” as the shell landed.
Looking toward Zamahl, she whispered to her homeland, “You hold the fate of Talia in your hands. Will you finally let the rest of the world in, or will you doom us to the claws of the gormons?” She shivered. Returning to her friends, she hoped it was the former.
***
The afternoon was warm—but not warm enough to cause the sheen of sweat that coated Bronwyn’s forehead. Arcon and Avruellen had left to collect firewood, and Sinjenasta lay on the cool grass, still unconscious, Bronwyn draped across him, her hand intermittently caressing his head. Fang rubbed his nose against the giant panther’s as he spoke into his mind. If you can hear me, Sinje, hang on. The dragons should be here soon, and they’re going to take you and Bronny to Vellonia. You have to get better; you’re one of my best friends. Fang laughed, which came out as a squeak. Who would have thought a rat and a panther could be friends? My life took an interesting turn the day I met Blayke, and knowing you has been an honor. Hang in there, my friend. He patted the black creatura’s face with a tiny paw, his whiskers tremblin
g with sadness.
Blayke sat next to them and watched, his face serious. He looked down at Corrille, who rested her head in his lap. “Sorry, but can you move for a sec? I just need to do something.”
“Do what?” she asked without moving.
“I want to see if Bronwyn needs anything.”
Corrille rolled her eyes. “Surely if she needed anything, she’d ask. She’s too wrapped up in that big lump of a panther to care about much else. Isn’t that right, Toran?”
“I don’t know if that’s fair, Corrille. They share a strong bond. She’s sick too.”
“Sick shmick. I think it’s all an act.”
Blayke breathed out loudly through his nose. “Why do you hate my sister so much? She told me, back on the island, that you’ve been purposefully nasty, but I told her she was imagining it. But now I’m not so sure.”
Corrille sat up quickly and opened her eyes wide. “I don’t hate Bronwyn. How could you say that? She was my best friend. I don’t like it when people don’t just get on with it; that’s all. Those scars on my back didn’t get there by magic, you know. But every day, I kept going like nothing happened.” She brushed a hand across her eye, as if wiping away a tear.
Blayke considered her for a moment before moving to kneel next to Bronwyn. He rubbed her back with his hand and leaned his mouth to her ear. “You’re burning up, Bronny. I’m going to get you some more water, and I want you to drink it. You’re not helping Sinjenasta by not looking after yourself. Lend him your strength.”
She looked up at his face and nodded.
“I’ll be back in a couple of minutes.” Blayke made his way to the nearby river. By the time he returned with a flask full of chilly water, fresh from the spring thaw, Bronwyn had managed to sit up and was chatting with Toran. “Here you go.”
Bronwyn took the flask and drank deeply. Toran smiled. “Thanks, Blayke.”
“My pleasure. Now we just have to get her to smile.”
Toran looked at Bronwyn. “That might be easier said than done. The only thing that will make her smile is getting Sinjenasta better.”
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