Cahil and a regiment of soldiers, including Marrok stood at attention. Ari and Janco waited with Leif. Janco scowled, showing his extreme dislike of magic.
Valek glowed with his own inner fire. For him, I would risk the flames’ heat.
I turned my attention to Opal’s creation. It pulsed with a muddy red light. The Fire Warper was locked inside.
The audience cheered. Opal placed the pig in the sand, and gathered another blob of molten glass, preparing for the next soul.
Roze, under the control of three Master Magicians, was forced to mount the gallows’ steps. The noose was tightened around her neck and the executioner stepped back. Her face contorted with rage and she shouted.
Time froze for a moment and I felt what it would have been like to stand there terrified, waiting for the floor to open and my life to end with a quick snap of my neck. If I had chosen the noose instead of becoming the Commander’s food taster two years ago, I wondered if any of this would have happened.
Roze fell in slow motion. Her body jerked at the end of the rope. Her soul flew. I captured it.
Her hateful thoughts filled my mind. Guardian of the underworld suits you, Yelena. You belong here. You don’t really believe you can go back? You’ll be feared by all and become an outcast in record time.
If I was a Soulstealer, I would agree with you, I said. You don’t scare me, Roze. You never did and that bothered you more than me being a Soulfinder.
Opal blew. I sent Roze on her final journey. Then Gede. Then the other four Warpers. Seven in all, including the Fire Warper.
When all the Warpers had been encased in glass, Opal sank to the ground in exhaustion. Now I could leave. I glanced around, trying to determine whether I missed anything, whether a soul who could do harm remained. Roze’s words had a bit of truth to them. Regardless of my explanations, Sitians would be frightened of me and the Council’s suspicion and unease would linger for a long time.
I welcomed the difficulties. All part of living, and I planned to enjoy every minute.
As I walked through my window to the Keep, sounds reached me first. The roar of the fire. Leif calling my name. Then scalding heat sucked my breath away. Bright yellow and orange stabbed at my eyes. My cape caught fire. I dived to the sand and rolled on the ground to snuff the flames. So much for my grand entrance.
36
I SPENT MY FIRST HOURS back cocooned in an excited babble of all my friends and family. Everyone except Valek. But I knew I would see him when the horde dispersed.
Once my fire had finished its macabre task of burning the traitors to ash, it was doused. Thick smoke boiled from it and clung to the ground until Gale Stormdance created a fresh breeze to whisk it away.
I noted with much interest how fast life resumed. Though glad I had returned, the Councilors left for a meeting, and Fisk and his guild hurried off to work in the market.
Before he left, Fisk flashed me a wide smile and said, “Lovely Yelena, you’ll need new clothes for the hot season. I know the best seamstress in the Citadel. Come find me when you’re ready.”
The hot season? Ari told me it had just started. I had lived in the underworld for seventy-one days, missing the entire warming season. I viewed the time with mixed emotions: glad my perceptions in the underworld didn’t match reality, especially if I ever needed to go back; and upset I wasn’t here to help clean up the mess left behind by the Vermin.
Ari and Janco grumbled over the hot, sticky weather and confessed their desire to go home to Ixia.
“We had fun rooting out all those Daviians,” Janco said. “But I’m sure Maren misses us.”
Ari looked doubtful. He had washed the black dye from his hair, and his light skin had burned in the Sitian sun. Janco’s skin had tanned, matching his Sitian clothes.
“Oh this?” Janco said, when I mentioned his new coloring. “You missed some beautiful days.”
“Janco’s been sunning himself every chance he gets,” Ari said with obvious disdain. “He claimed he kept the fire going, but I caught him snoozing in the sand a few times.”
“Once!” Janco said.
They began to bicker. I laughed and moved away, but heard Ari call out, “Training yard, five o’clock.”
Kiki’s urgent summons had nagged me the whole time I’d been back. I hurried over to the stable to spend an hour with her. Perhaps Valek would show up and we could get reacquainted in the straw.
I scratched her ears, fed her peppermints and ducked behind a stack of hay bales when the Stable Master came looking for me, probably to give me a lecture about borrowing Garnet for so long.
Lavender Lady not go again, Kiki said in my mind.
I’ll try to avoid it. No promises, though.
She huffed. Next time Kiki go.
A Horsefinder?
Help Lavender Lady, Kiki said, as if that ended the discussion.
Even though I longed to return to my rooms in Irys’s tower, my parents insisted I come to their quarters in the Keep’s guest wing after I visited the stables. Leif, Irys and Bain followed me, and the six of us sat in the living room, sipping tea. Wedged tightly between my father and mother on the couch, I was held prisoner. My desire to seek Valek would have to wait.
Bain and Irys were most interested in what had happened in the fire and shadow worlds. After giving them a brief sketch, Bain made me promise to visit him and recite the details for his book.
“You passed the Master-level test,” Irys said.
“What?” Caught off guard by this sudden change in topic, I choked on my tea.
“You entered the underworld and returned with a spirit guide. Your encounter with the Fire Warper was your challenge, and his defeat your success.”
“But I don’t have a spirit guide.”
Leif laughed. “Your bat! I thought he was strange. Beside the obvious fact that he wanted to hang out with you.”
“Leif. That’s not nice, considering all your sister has done for you,” Perl admonished.
“Oh, right. How can I forget that she made me bait for a snake, left me under house arrest in Ixia and smuggled me into the Keep in a coffin. And don’t forget the time…”
I ignored Leif’s rant. I wondered, why a bat? Why not something fearsome like a fire dragon or necklace snake? Irys had a hawk, Bain a wind leopard and Zitora a unicorn. Thinking of Zitora, I reminded myself to go visit her in the infirmary. She had been severely wounded during the fight with the Warpers, and her recovery had been slow.
I kept glancing out the window, hoping to see Valek. My mind circled through various excuses for me to leave everyone to search for him.
Bain interrupted Leif’s list of grievances against me. “According to our policies, Yelena is Fourth Magician.”
I raised my hand to prevent any more wild speculation. “No. I can’t light fires or move objects like the Masters can. I’m a Soulfinder. My job is to find lost souls and send them home, including the souls of Ixia. There is still need for a Liaison between the two countries. I plan to reassume the role.”
And the first order of business would be to assess Cahil’s intentions. His help in defeating Roze and uncovering all the Vermin nests had proven invaluable to the Council, but I wasn’t convinced his new role meant he wouldn’t try some way to claim Ixia’s throne.
Leif asked, “What do we do with those glass prisons? They’re under guard, but we don’t want them falling into the wrong hands.”
“What would happen if they break?” Perl asked.
They all looked at me. “If the souls are freed, they will go to the fire world, unless there is another Soulfinder to place them elsewhere.”
“Elsewhere?” Leif raised his eyebrows.
“Into another body or to the sky.” I sighed. “We will have to find a place to protect and to hide them.”
“The Keep,” Bain said.
“The Illiais Jungle has some deep caves,” Esau suggested.
“Under the Emerald Mountains,” Irys said.
“Su
nken in the deepest part of the sea,” Leif said.
“Buried under the northern ice,” Perl recommended.
“All good ideas, but the Council will need to debate the issue and decide.”
My gaze met Irys’s. She gave me a wry smile. We both knew the Council would argue for months, and it was up to me to find a home for them.
I spent the rest of the afternoon with my family. Perl and Esau made me promise to come visit them.
“A nice relaxing visit,” Perl ordered. “No chasing Vermin or saving anyone. We’ll sit and talk and I’ll make you a new perfume.”
“Yes, Mother.”
She made me eat before I could leave. I hurried to the training yard, hoping Valek would be there.
He was not. The man must be torturing me on purpose. I had made him wait over two months. Perhaps he was returning the favor.
Ari and Janco sparred with swords. And although Janco sang his rhymes and Ari used his brute strength, they were equally matched in skill. They stopped when they saw me.
“Come on,” Janco said. “Ari wants to make sure you’re in good fighting shape before we leave.”
“I do?”
“Yes, you do. Otherwise you’ll worry about her.”
“I will?”
“Of course.” Janco waved away Ari’s comments. “Besides, this is just a lull before the next storm. We need to be ready!”
This time I piped in. “The next storm?”
Janco sighed dramatically. “There’s always another storm. It’s the way the world works. Snowstorms, rainstorms, wind-storms, sandstorms and firestorms. Some are fierce and others are small. You have to deal with each one separately, but you need to always keep an eye on what’s brewing for tomorrow.”
Ari rolled his eyes. “Janco’s unique view of life. Yesterday he compared living to food.”
“That’s because some food leaves you full while others—”
“Janco,” I said. “Prepare for my storm.” I swept my bow toward his feet.
He jumped over it with a nimble grace. Dropping his sword, he reached for his bow and our match began.
Since I had returned from the underworld, I could see everyone with a new sight. With a blink of my eyes, I saw through their bodies and directly into their souls. I knew their thoughts, feelings and intentions as if they were my own. Before I had to pull power for the source and project myself to them. Now the connection was there the second I thought about it.
Janco’s comical surprise when I dumped him on the ground in three moves was almost worth my trip through the underworld. Almost.
He huffed and blustered and tried to make excuses. I stopped our second fight to guide a soul to the sky. Many hung around the Keep and I knew I would have to do a sweep of the Citadel.
Janco viewed my magical actions as if they were distasteful to him. “At least you’re expending energy. You’ll be easier to beat,” he smirked.
“Wishful thinking,” I said.
After losing the next four matches, Janco finally conceded.
“Am I ready for the next storm?” I asked him, smiling sweetly.
“You are the next storm.”
Bruised ego aside, Janco and Ari were pleased with my fighting skills.
“You found your center,” Ari said with a note of approval in his voice. “You’re not afraid to embrace who you are. Now Janco won’t have to worry anymore.”
“I’ll let Ari do all the worrying for both of us. Oh wait! He already does.”
“I do not. You’re the one who moaned and fussed about Yelena all these weeks.”
“I did not.”
They launched into another round of bickering. I never thought I would enjoy listening to them, but I did. Until I saw Cahil walking toward the training yard.
He held his long broadsword. I watched him approach, preparing to defend myself if need be. I studied his emotions with my other sight. Hate, determination and anxiety dominated his feelings.
Cahil stopped at the fence. “I didn’t come here to fight,” he said. “I want to talk to you.”
Ari and Janco didn’t seem concerned by his presence, and continued their debate. But they hadn’t been on the wrong side of Cahil’s wrath. I moved closer with my bow in hand, keeping the wooden fence between us.
“What do you want to talk about?” I demanded.
Cahil pulled in a deep breath and let the air out fast. “I wanted to…”
“Go on. Say it.”
Irritation flared in Cahil’s light blue eyes, but he stifled it. “I wanted to explain.”
“Explain why you’re nasty, ruthless, opportunistic—”
“Yelena! Will you shut up.”
My expression must have warned him, because he rushed to continue. “You bring out the worst in me. Can you listen?” A pause. “Please?”
“All right.”
“When I found out that I didn’t have royal blood, that my whole purpose in life was a sham, I refused to believe it. Even when Marrok admitted I was just a soldier’s son, I didn’t want to hear it. Instead, I transferred my anger to you and Valek and decided I would find a way to make the Council support an attack on Ixia to reclaim the throne.” Cahil looked down at the sword in his hand. “You know what I did after. I lost my way and swallowed every morsel of Roze’s lies.”
Cahil handed me his sword. It had been the King of Ixia’s sword. Rescued after the King had been assassinated, the sword had been given to Cahil as part of the ruse to make him believe he was the King’s nephew.
“Give it to the Commander for me,” Cahil said. “By rights, it should be his.”
“Have you given up your desire to rule Ixia?”
He looked at me and I saw a renewed sense of purpose in his soul. “No. I still seek to free Ixia from the Commander’s strict rule. But I no longer feel I should inherit the throne. I plan to earn the privilege.”
“Then that’s going to make for some interesting discussions between us.” I held his gaze.
“You can count on it.”
The summons from Ambassador Signe came after a long soak in a hot bath. I exchanged my damaged cape and smoky clothes for a clean pair of cotton pants and shirt. My hair hadn’t grown while I was in the underworld. The inch-long strands, though, were long enough to lay flat on my head.
The Ambassador waited in the Keep’s administration building. She had the use of a meeting room and an office during her stay. I hurried up the stairs and into the marble building, hoping to see Valek there. My disappointment churned in my stomach and I wondered if Valek was avoiding me.
Ambassador Signe greeted me warmly, inquiring about my health. I studied her face. So similar to the Commander’s almost delicate features, yet missing the full force of the powerful spark residing in his gold eyes. With my new vision, I saw the two souls that struggled for dominance. They took turns, but I could see the red spiral of conflict within.
“Irys Jewelrose informed me you wish to resume your duties as Liaison. Is this true?”
“Yes. Becoming an adviser to the Commander is very tempting, but I feel my skills should serve both Ixia and Sitia by keeping relations open and fostering an understanding between the two nations.”
“I see. Then your first order of business should be to negotiate a salary.”
“A salary?”
“You can not be paid by the magicians or the Council. You must receive equal wages from Sitia and Ixia to maintain your neutrality.” She smiled. “For all that you have done recently, I would suggest you barter for a considerable amount.”
“Obviously, there are many things I need to think about in my new role.”
“I trust, then, your education is complete?”
I laughed. “There will never be a time when it’s complete, but I’ve reached an understanding with my abilities.”
“Good. I look forward to our negotiations.”
Before the Ambassador could dismiss me, I said, “I have something for the Commander.”
She looked at me expectantly.
“It’s with your guard. He wouldn’t let me bring it in.”
Rising from her desk, she opened the door and returned with the King’s sword.
“May I speak to the Commander?” I asked.
The transformation from the Ambassador to the Commander happened in a heartbeat. Even the physical features changed from a woman to a man. I had seen it before, but this time I watched with my other sight. It revealed much.
“What is this for?” the Commander asked. He studied the weapon in his hand.
“Cahil is returning it to you. You won the right to wield it over seventeen years ago.”
A thoughtful expression settled on his face as he placed the sword on the desk. “Cahil. What should I do about him?”
I told the Commander about his plans. “He could cause trouble for you in the future, although I hope my efforts will change his mind.”
“I know Valek would be happy to assassinate him.” He considered that scenario. “But he might prove useful, especially in dealing with the younger generation.” He saw my confused frown. “It’ll give them something to do.”
“Or give them someone to rally behind.”
“All part of the fun, I suppose. Is that all?”
“No.” I gave the Commander one of Opal’s glass animals.
He admired the tree leopard and thanked me for the gift.
“The glow you see is magic,” I said.
His gaze pierced me and I felt his sense of betrayal as if I poisoned him. He placed the statue on the desk. I explained why he could view the fire.
“I can see two souls within your body. Your mother didn’t want to leave you alone when she died so she stayed with you. Her magic lets you see the glow. And it’s her fear of discovery that has made you afraid of magic in all its forms.”
Commander Ambrose held his body as if any movement would crack it into a thousand pieces. “How do you know this?”
“I’m a Soulfinder. I find lost souls and send them to the sky. Does she want to go? Do you want her to go?”
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