Vulture

by Rhiannon Paille

Krishani felt like he’d been kicked in the stomach even though Elwen was done beating him. He held his fists at his side and clenched his teeth. He didn’t have anything to say about the Vultures. He looked at Kaliel and nodded at her to go with Pux. He hoped she knew he would see her later, when this was over, but he wasn’t entirely sure of that anymore. She gave him one last warning look, bowed her head, and followed Pux along the side of the road.

  When she was out of earshot, Krishani turned to Elwen. “You saw the Vultures?”

  Elwen scoffed. “Of course I can see them. But unlike you, I can’t do a damned thing to stop them. That’s supposed to be your job.” He didn’t bother hiding the disdain in his voice. His brow creased and Krishani noticed a long gash across his cheek.

  “I’m sorry,” Krishani said, hanging his head. He held his hands out in front of him and stifled his disgust as he turned over his right hand and looked into his palm.

  “I told you once,” Elwen said through clenched teeth. “The only thing that stops you from becoming one of them is being the Ferryman.”

  “And if I hunt down the Horsemen and end them?” Krishani asked.

  Elwen sighed and turned away. He stalked to the hall. “You’ll never be free. Whether they bring death or others bring it, you will always be the one to follow it.”

  Krishani shuffled along and stopped at the foot of the steps as the doors slammed shut. He sighed and kicked a rock out of the way with the toe of his boot. He rubbed his swelling face and took a deep breath. Ending the Horsemen would be a start.

  * * *

  17 - More Enemies

  Pux pulled Kaliel away from the confrontation between Elwen and Krishani. He had been so worried about where she had gone that it had been hard to sleep and even worse to eat. He’d thrown up most of what he did eat. Now he was hungry again. He kept a firm grip on her elbow as he moved through the gate and into the barn. He wordlessly pushed her up the rungs of the ladder in the center. Her feet slipped as he followed and she crawled across the space on her hands and knees. Pux went to grab a bale of hay to throw down when he noticed her huddled in an awkward position.

  “Why did you leave me like that?” he asked.

  Kaliel was afraid of heights, something Pux had known since they were little kids. He climbed trees and she didn’t. She clutched her knees tighter. “What are Vultures?”

  Pux gulped, worried she was still thinking about Krishani. He sighed; she was always thinking about him. If he wasn’t on her mind it would be a miracle or a catastrophe. He wasn’t sure which. He moved to the closest bale of hay and pushed it to the ledge. There was no railing to keep someone from falling off, but Pux liked it up there. He had a little nest in the back he made his own. It was better than sleeping with the pigs. He shoved the hay bale off the ledge and dusted his hands, glancing back at her.

  “I don’t know,” he replied. He heard them talking about the creatures before, but Pux wasn’t supposed to ask questions. He was supposed to be stupid and useless. The only saving grace was that the villagers liked him, and Jack treated him well. Still, without Kaliel or Krishani it was reminiscent of the months he spent alone with Mallorn, only without Mallorn either. Elwen was rude when he didn’t have anyone stopping him. “And stop avoiding me. Why did you go?”

  She looked conflicted, and he felt sorry for asking. He stepped over the hole that led to the ladder and sat beside her. He waited.

  “I had to see it again,” she lamented.

  “And?”

  “Everything is ruined,” she whispered.

  Pux rubbed her back like an older brother should. “It’s Avristar though. It couldn’t have been that bad.”

  Kaliel shook her head and buried her head in her knees. He noticed she was wearing the same ivory dress she used to wear. She looked different in it, like it didn’t suit her black hair and darker green eyes. He lifted his hand off her back and twisted them in his own lap, not knowing how to help her. After a long pause she glanced at him, her eyes splotchy and red. “It was worse than you could imagine.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  Kaliel wiped her eyes and smiled, taking a shaky breath. “I don’t want to talk about it anymore.”

  “Okay.”

  Kaliel wrapped her arms around her shins and rocked back and forth slowly. He could tell her mind was full of questions and thoughts, but he didn’t say anything. He stretched out his wolf legs and inspected the bruises and cuts between the fur. He didn’t want to admit that working in the village was tough. He had to be up at dawn, didn’t get many breaks, and slept when the sun went down. The dancing dropped off considerably after she left, the villagers choosing instead to light the hearth fire and sit around it telling stories. Their stories were bland and oftentimes Pux ended up talking until his throat was dry and scratchy. He really didn’t think Avristar was all that interesting, but the villagers drank his stories in and reveled in the magic of the land. They were envious but he didn’t rub it in their faces. They lived in what Pux would call a wasteland and he had grown up in what they would call paradise.

  “What do Ferrymen do?” Kaliel asked, giving him a sidelong glance.

  Pux ran his hands down his breeches and folded them into fists. He felt uneasy. This wasn’t something he should be telling her. He was surprised she didn’t know. “Elwen says they follow death.”

  “Oh,” Kaliel said as though she already knew that.

  “Come on,” Pux said, moving to his feet. He twisted towards the ladder and lowered himself through the hole. He watched Kaliel slowly pull herself across the platform, angling herself so she could follow him down. When he jumped off the last rung he held out a hand and caught her as she jumped off and tilted a bit, almost falling over.

  Pux smiled. “We should feed the horses like we promised. Hyatt gets cranky when I don’t do as I’m told.” He bent down and took the bale of hay in his hands. It was way too big for his body but it was tied together with rope that Pux used as handles. He waddled out of the barn, hoping Krishani wasn’t still outside fighting with Elwen.

  • • •

  Krishani scowled at the door in his face. He took the steps two at a time and threw them open. Elwen turned, only halfway down the clean red carpet. Krishani didn’t really care how Elwen felt about this entire ordeal. Torchlight cast shadows along Elwen’s face as Shimma stepped out from behind a pillar, her long blonde hair framing her oval face. Her chapped lips were pressed together, her blue eyes a flurry of storms. She wore her familiar blue dress, the sleeves clinging to her arms and tapering at the wrist. She flipped a waft of blonde hair over her shoulder, and Krishani felt a pit in his stomach. He glanced at the wings nervously, waiting for the other two witches to come out of the shadows and attack him. He slid a foot back and opened his hands, ready in case anyone else felt like beating him up.

  Elwen crossed his arms and narrowed his gaze. Krishani watched torchlight glint off the silver rings around his fingers. His ancestor still disgusted him with his gaudy show of power.

  Shimma laughed. “Honestly, Krishani, did you think your life would change because you have your precious Kaliel?”

  Krishani looked at her and frowned, wondering where the other two were. He straightened his back and pulled his tunic taut over his chest. He smirked. “Jealous?”

  Shimma’s cheeks turned red. She opened her mouth, then closed it, her eyes shooting daggers at him. “You should be thanking me! Kuruny was going to make your skin wrinkle like an old man.”

  Krishani raised an eyebrow. He wasn’t nearly finished with Elwen, but Shimma seemed to be back to her old self. Aside from all the awkwardness, she was the same nefarious bitch she had always been. He tried to think of something vile to say, but nothing seemed harsh enough. And she kept staring at him like a lost puppy. It was maddening.

  “They’re not here though.” He thought of it as a victory.

  Shimma let her arms drop from her upper forearms where her fingernails dug into the fabric. She slid her foot ba
ck and forth along the stone creating a sound like sandpaper. “They left for Nimphalls with Clamose.”

  “And how exactly did they get there?” Krishani asked, pulling at the necklace. He kept it hidden underneath his tunic. He pulled the beads over his head and glanced at the interlocking seashells. Shrugging, he threw them at Shimma. They landed clumsily at her feet. She immediately bent to pick them up.

  Her grayish blue eyes sized him up. “I had to give them the lantern, you twit,” she spat, rising to her feet.

  “Why didn’t you go with them?” he asked.

  “Krishani,” Elwen said. The boy looked at him and realized the reason he stormed into the castle in the first place.

  “I meant it, Elwen. I’m going after the Horsemen,” Krishani said, not caring that Shimma was standing right there. She was swine as far as he was concerned.

  Elwen kept his arms crossed; his face was smooth and expressionless. “I was going to say that running away from who you are won’t change anything, but it seems you’ve finally figured that out for yourself.” There was an edge to his tone as though he was sarcastic but Krishani ignored it while Shimma snickered.

  “Why are you still here?” Krishani asked her, his voice louder than he intended.

  Shimma shrugged nonchalantly. “I stayed behind to collect these from you.”

  Krishani blinked. She seemed to be trying awfully hard to hide something but he didn’t know what it was. His skills in metaphysics or weather manipulation or anything other than dealing with death were piss-poor. “Fine. You can give Kuruny and Kazza my regards,” he sneered.

  Shimma coughed and stepped around him, pausing at the doors. “I’m not going to them. I need to see how the villagers at the cove are. They have nobody to guide them,” she said, her voice as tight as harp strings. She put her knobby hand on the edge of the door.

  Krishani looked over his shoulder and laughed. “You really think you’re wise enough to be their … what exactly?”

  “Priestess,” Shimma said quietly.

  Krishani’s eyes widened. “If Istar ever found out.…” He remembered countless days of Istar complaining about his daughters, saying they were unjust, unsanitary, and uncouth. He used to go on tirades about how they were unfit for the Priestesshood of Avristar. It was blasphemy for Shimma to step in and take a position without the consent of her father and Lord of Avristar. She returned his bewildered, challenging look with one of reproach.

  “And if he knew about Rand?” she rebuked.

  All the color drained from Krishani’s face. Panic settled into his bones as he stayed locked in a stare down with her. “You said you wouldn’t say anything.”

  Shimma hummed. “And neither will you.” She bowed her head. “I hope I never see you again, Ferryman.”

  Krishani bowed his head, the words falling from his lips before he knew what he was saying. “The day you see me will be the day you die.”

  Shimma nodded curtly and sashayed out of the hall, her dress flowing around her as she descended the steps. The doors closed behind her and Krishani whipped around to face Elwen. His ancestor had a satisfied expression on his face, as though Krishani was giving him everything he wanted.

  “Spoken like a true Ferryman, Krishani,” Elwen said. He stepped backwards towards the throne reaching the altar. He opened a hidden compartment in the underbelly of the altar and pulled something out. He turned and smiled. “One day you will forget that name. One comfort I can offer is that I will never forget your name.”

  Krishani clenched his fist, heat and discomfort rising in his chest. “How do I fight the Horsemen?”

  Elwen looked down, his features no longer seamless. “I don’t want you to kill the Horsemen.”

  “Killing them will fix everything.”

  Elwen turned over the thing he was holding in his hand. “Killing them will only bring more. Unless it is a natural death, the Vultures will always come.”

  Krishani let the words wash over him as he swayed on his heels. He wanted this torturous lecture to be over. It was never any different; it felt like Elwen was ripping his insides out and there was nothing he could do would stop it because his insides were infected to begin with. He ran the sentence over in his mind and stopped on two words. “Natural death?”

  Elwen sighed. “Natural deaths are protected from Vultures. But they’re very rare, as most are killed by magic or murder.”

  Krishani paled. His head swam with dark thoughts. “How do you expect me to do this? Terra is hundreds of times larger than Avristar. If there are more enemies, more than just the Horsemen.…” He was unable to complete his thoughts. He put a hand flat against his forehead and tried to calm his accelerated breathing. He hadn’t realized he was almost hyperventilating.

  Elwen placed a flat stone in his hand. Krishani looked at it, but there wasn’t anything particularly special about the sandy colored rock. “High King Tor gave us these in the First Era. They’re made from regular sandstone, but they allow you to transport.”

  Krishani met his brown eyes. He remembered Pux being able to transport once upon a time, but his ability was inborn, like Krishani being tied to the weather by an invisible emotional string. He squeezed the stone and something inside of him shifted. An undercurrent coursed through him, reminding him of the lake and the mists and the island he left behind forever.

  “It will take you to the next battle,” Elwen said.

  Krishani let his fingers relax on the stone, not wanting it to take him to the middle of the bloodshed. He felt queasy holding something so powerful. “Will I have enough time to save anyone?”

  Elwen shook his head, he looked disappointed. “You’ll have time to save the souls.”

  “Will the Horsemen be there?”

  “Probably. Don’t get hurt.”

  Krishani curled his lips up in a crooked smile. It was all arrogance and sarcasm. “I can’t die, remember?”

  Elwen began walking to the throne. “That won’t prevent them from severing limbs,” he shouted. “How much pain you’re willing to live in is your choice.” He waved a hand over his head to usher Krishani out of the hall and disappeared into the shadows.

  Krishani gripped the stone and hung his head. This wasn’t how he wanted it to be. He turned on his heel and stormed out. He hoped Tyr was up for this because he wasn’t going to stop until the Horsemen were dead.

  * * *

  18 - Happy Endings

  Kaliel stood in the watchtower, her eyes on the mirror. The resemblance to her old self was striking. She had the same soft cheek bones and curvy pink lips. Her nose was straighter, and her eyebrows were bushy and black. She blinked and watched the deep black eyelashes sweep across the bags under her eyes. The skin wasn’t bruised but shaded, her face not as pasty white as it used to be. The only real difference was her eyes. They weren’t the same shining emerald they had always been. These eyes were musty green, like moss. Flecks of hazel swathed closer to the pupil, and ragged streaks of red shot through the eye whites. She tried to rest, but sleep wouldn’t come. That was another familiar thing–the insomnia. She ran her hands down the ivory dress; there was more meat on her bones in this body. She had a fuller chest and midsection but the same knobby knees and skinny arms. She held her hands in front of her face and turned them over. Faint white lines smattered the skin. Proof of damage.

  Kaliel opened the box from Avristar, her birthstone resting against the crushed velvet. Taking it in her hands she stepped back and fell onto the bed. She closed her eyes and when she opened them, the birthstone had its familiar violet aura. Her heart ached with a rapacious longing for home. The rude awakening that met them was cataclysmic. It took everything not to lash out at Benir, not to burn trees from the inside out. And seeing Elwen tackle Krishani like that made bile rise in her throat. She would have gotten involved if she hadn’t been afraid of being hit. He didn’t look like the type that would care if she was a girl. And Pux was there, pulling her away. He acted like this was normal.

&
nbsp; She sighed. Krishani was taking too long. His expression said he would see her later, but it was later and he wasn’t there. He never did this on Avristar. Their nights at the waterfall could be timed by the moon perfectly. She rolled onto her side and winced at the cramp in her abdomen. Pain felt so different. It spiked, sliced, and stabbed instead of throbbed and swayed. She didn’t like the sensations reverberating through her when she shifted the wrong way. Her eyebrows drew together as she stretched. She put the birthstone back in the box and slipped into her slippers. She went to leave but stopped, trading the ivory dress for the black one that used to belong to another girl. She swept out of the watchtower and clambered down the stairs, not really sure where she was going. She rounded the castle and came to the front steps. It was nearing nightfall, dusk falling over the land with its mismatched shadows and gray light. Torches outside of the hall were lit, blazing up to a half quad high. The doors to the hall were closed, which struck her as odd because she thought the hall was open to all.

  Kaliel stopped, her heart leaping into her throat. Squealing, clucking, and balking came from the barn. This was something she wasn’t used to hearing. Animals in Avristar chattered, prattled, and brayed, but they didn’t squawk or squeal. She blotted out the sounds and continued to the stables. Her senses hitched as she neared it and heard someone shuffling around in there. The door was open a crack and she pushed the wide, light wood out of the way.

  Krishani threw a knapsack over the backside of a piebald white horse. Kaliel froze and looked at the ground, licking her lips and then biting the bottom lip. He noticed her, but his face filled with alarm. She closed the distance between them and looked at the horse. “What are you doing?”

  Krishani pulled on the saddle strap and stared at her with vacant eyes. “I won’t be long.”

  Kaliel stepped back, heart aching, palms sweaty. She frowned and let out a long breath. “You’re not going to say goodbye?”

  Krishani sighed and moved towards her with lightning speed, taking her hands in his and pressing them against his chest. His eyes searched hers but all they found was disappointment.