by Walls, Devri
His mouth twisted. “It’s a good thing I can tell you’re not rummaging through my head because otherwise, I would have been sure of it.”
“You’re scared,” Kiora said.
He didn’t move, or smile. Just sat and stared. Her eyes drank in his features. His bone structure was so delicate, his eyes so clear. Kiora could still feel those lips on hers, and her fingers itched to reach out and touch them.
“Are Taveans not allowed to be scared?” she asked.
‘No.”
“Not ever?”
“That is what we tell each other.”
“But what are you telling me?”
At that, Alcander leaned forward, his face impossibly close. Very gently Kiora reached up and traced his cheekbones. Alcander’s eyes fluttered shut beneath her touch.
“Magic is what I am,” he said so quietly that Kiora had to strain to hear him despite the closeness. “I cannot imagine fighting without it.”
“Magic is not what you are,” Kiora whispered back. “It is a part of you, but it is not your heart. It’s not your soul, or your mind. Those things do not change, no matter how much magic you have.”
“What good are any of those without magic?”
“Alcander, look at me.”
His eyes flicked open, looking at her through hooded lids.
“If it comes down to it, you will learn to fight as a Witow. Your mind, your heart, and your soul will direct you. It will be uncomfortable—you will not like it. But believe it or not, we now have the advantage.”
His eyebrows knit together. “How can we possibly have an advantage?”
“Don’t you see?” Kiora’s excitement was growing as she finally pieced it all together. “If I find the talisman, we might be able to get the Lights, which means we could avoid a war completely. And if we can’t get the Lights, we have the only Witow who knows how to fight as Witows fight. We will be prepared for the loss of magic. The Shadow’s armies will be completely unprepared. They will be without weapons, without training, and without magic. This is exactly what we needed to balance how outnumbered we are. We finally have the advantage.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Lomay’s Visions
THE NEXT MORNING DAWNED bright and cold. Kiora lay in her bed, not wanting to step out into the frigid air. Poking her head up just enough to start a fire in the fireplace, she lay back, waiting for the room to heat.
She had left Alcander last night with another kiss. Just thinking about it sent her stomach flipping in a delicious sort of way. But once Kiora had returned to her room, her mind began wrestling with itself. The situation with Emane was becoming more impossible by the day, and every touch, every kiss from Alcander just made it all the more difficult.
Drustan knocked at the door.
“Come in,” she called. Pushing up, Kiora pulled the blankets around her as he strode in. “Good morning.”
“Lomay said you would like me to accompany you back to Meros instead of Arturo. Why? I was under the impression I would need to train with Emane so we could fight together.”
“I don’t know that he will have time. Emane needs to train everyone now.” It was the truth, kind of. She was just omitting the actual reason she wanted Drustan to come. Leaving him here with Emane and Alcander would be disastrous.
“Oh?”
Kiora frowned at him. “Did you talk to anyone yesterday? Or did you just sleep all day?”
“I don’t think a single one of you has any idea what you have asked of my body. Since we have arrived here, I have pushed my body to its limits and I am tired. I rest to ensure I am ready when you snap your little fingers.” He tossed his dark hair off his shoulder.
“You know I am very grateful for your help.”
Drustan nodded, appearing mollified.
“I will explain more on the way, but for now Alcander and Emane will work together while we head back to Meros.”
“Very well then, what are we flying as?”
“Something fast and comfortable.”
“Your wish is my command, my lady,” he said, throwing in a snap of his fingers for good measure. “Are you coming to breakfast?”
“Yes, if I can make myself get out of this bed.” She poked her arm out of the covers to test the temperature.
“You should have lit that fire last night,” Drustan observed. “It is freezing in here,” he added, shutting the door behind him.
“Of course I should have.” She gasped when she put her feet on the cold floor. Scampering over to get her clothes, she pulled on a clean pair of pants and a light green tunic. She brushed her hair out, letting it fall over her shoulders.
She was the last one to arrive for breakfast. When she entered the room, Emane and Alcander’s eyes both followed her—Emane’s with a desperate weariness, Alcander’s still burning with the fire they held last night as he kissed her.
She avoided them both, looking instead at breakfast. “It’s not fish.”
Lomay looked pleased with himself. “I did a little magic while you were gone and managed to procure a few items that will go unnoticed.”
She sat in the chair the two boys had left for her, right between them. She kept her elbows inside the arms of the chair. Piling her plate with some flat bread crusted with sugar, she threw a small pile of blueberries on top and drizzled the whole thing with cream. Taking a big bite, she grinned. “Delicious.”
Emane leaned back, his food already finished. “It’s a vast improvement to the fish.”
Drustan took a bite. “That’s fine,” he said around a mouthful of food, pointing his fork at Emane. “Next time you need a fisherman, you can ask someone else. I, for one, am tired of working for ingrates.”
Alcander laughed, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms. “The Shifter is so sensitive.”
Drustan tilted his head with a devious smile. “And the Tavean laughs. I wonder what caused that change?”
Emane’s eyes darkened and Kiora almost threw her fork at Drustan. To keep the utensil in her hand, she shoveled in another bite, grateful she had decided to take Drustan to Meros. The last thing she needed was Drustan goading Emane and Alcander.
“Kiora,” Lomay said, “now that you have had a night to think about things, what would you like us to do while you are gone?”
“I want Emane in charge. He can tell you what we need in the forms of weapons and training. We need to see how many people we have, where they are, and what plans we can come up with. Once I have the talisman, we will have a better idea of the final parts of the plan.” She glanced at Alcander, who looked at her with knowing eyes. “But we need all the time we can get to train everyone.”
“Excellent plan. Couldn’t have said it better myself,” Lomay agreed.
Kiora grimaced, shoving another bite into her mouth. She was letting Lomay think she was following the path of his visions. But she didn’t want to broach the subject of going after the Lights until she knew if it was even possible to take that path. She was certain Lomay would share Drustan’s opinion on the matter and it was no use arguing until she had the means to make a case. At least, that was what she told herself to ignore the half truths that were quickly becoming part of her daily interactions.
“What do you plan to do with the talisman?” Lomay asked.
“Let’s make sure it is where I think it is first.”
“Very well,” Lomay agreed. “Arturo has agreed to stay close in case we need his assistance, but I am worried we may be too far away for you to call him from Meros. But your mind connection to Alcander will work regardless of the distance, so you may deliver a message to him if you need.”
Kiora sat straight up. “What? Alcander, you said you couldn’t call.”
“I said we usually couldn’t.” Alcander’s jaw was stiff, his lips barely moving. “You have opened a situation that works.”
Alcander? Kiora thought.
He squirmed in his chair, grasping at the arms. “Please. Don’t,” he groaned.<
br />
Kiora could feel his presence in her mind tighten and contract under her attempt. Her mouth opened in a question, but Alcander pushed his chair back and nearly flew out of the room. Stunned, Kiora looked back to the others. Drustan was suddenly very interested in his breakfast, Emane was clearly irritated that calling was not unique to him, and Lomay looked steadily at her.
“Oh,” Kiora said, throwing her fork on the table. She ran through the mansion, following Alcander outside. Pushing the door open, she was met with the sound of crashing waves and fierce sea wind, the wet cold sliding into her bones. Alcander stood at the edge of the cliff overlooking the ocean.
“You can’t just run away, you know!” she shouted to his back, feeling a little foolish at that statement.
“I have never run away,” he yelled back to her. “Ever. Until I met you! And you have turned me so far upside down and inside out, I don’t know what else to do.”
“Why didn’t you tell me I could call you until now?” Kiora demanded, pushing her hair angrily out of her face as she walked next to him.
He gripped his head. “You don’t understand.”
“Then explain it to me.”
Alcander whirled on her. “Our minds—they are different from yours. It’s why we guard them so carefully. You—you can talk to me and let me hear only your words. It’s not like that with me.”
“You acted like I was hurting you, and all I did was say your name.”
“Having your voice, your head, inside me—I feel like I am naked, completely exposed. It is the most uncomfortable, horrible…” He stopped, his chest rising and falling. “You don’t understand. This is something that most Taveans will never experience because they would never do what I did for you.”
“Then why did you do it?” Kiora shouted, her voice wobbling. “If it’s so horrible for you . . . ”
“I did it for you!” Alcander yelled, stepping closer to her. “I did it because I love you! I did it to keep you alive!” She bit her lip, watching his chest heaving and his arms shaking. “By the Creators, Kiora. This is killing me!”
She took a startled step back. “I am killing you?” she asked, suddenly hurt.
“Kiora.” He grabbed her hands, clenching them between his own. “How would you feel if suddenly you couldn’t cry anymore? If you couldn’t talk to anyone about anything anymore? If you were expected to keep everything inside?” His blue eyes were darker than normal.
“I…I don’t know if I could.” Tears started to form in her eyes.
“This bond, these feelings for you. It is asking me to change my very nature. It is bad enough to have your voice in my head.” He shuddered. “But to answer you back, to talk to you—I cannot separate my thoughts. Your answer will come laced with thoughts and feelings, images that I never intended to send. You will see…” Alcander squeezed her hands. “So much. Too much. Even more than you saw when we connected minds.”
“Alcander, I didn’t understand.”
He dropped wearily to his knees, his hands sliding from hers, his face contorted in pain and confusion.
Kiora fell to the ground in front of him, scooping his hand back into one of her own. “I don’t want to hurt you,” she whispered, running her fingers along his jaw. “I promise, I will only use it in an emergency.”
He nodded, looking over her shoulder. The second he did, Kiora felt what he was looking at. She cursed her preoccupation as she turned to see Emane at the door. His back was already to her as he headed inside, his shoulders tense. Kiora’s hand fell to the grass.
***
KIORA PACKED SOME CLOTHES and the book of Creators before shouldering her pack and heading down the giant staircase. Everyone was already outside. Pushing open the door, she stopped short before bursting into laughter. Lomay was chuckling, hunched up even farther than normal over his walking stick. Emane stood to the side, his arms crossed, trying desperately not to laugh but only half succeeding. Alcander was walking around, his lips pursed, looking at the strangest creature Kiora had ever seen.
“What in the name of Nestor are you supposed to be?” Alcander asked Drustan.
“Really, Alcander, do the Shifters here have no imagination?” Drustan replied.
“Not really, and no sense of humor,” Lomay said.
Drustan’s body was shaped like a Pegasus, with a narrow back and neck that was covered with thick, soft fur, much like the flying fox Alcander rode. But his wings were enormous dragon wings that stretched much farther than they should have, and even better than Drustan’s bizarre conglomeration of body parts was the color. The hair on his back was pink fuzzy down and his mane was white-and-orange striped. His wings were green, his body blue.
Kiora covered her mouth with a snort. Drustan turned, grinning, his wings rotating with him and nearly taking out Alcander, who had to drop flat to the ground to avoid impact.
Alcander glared up at Drustan.
“And here she is,” Drustan crowed. “The lady worth all this work.”
“Wow, Drustan. It’s—well, impressive.”
“Impressive!” Emane cut in, his arms dropping to his sides. “I can’t tell whether he’s from a dream or a nightmare. And really, Drustan, why on earth did you think that orange and green went together?”
“I had no idea you were such an expert or I would have stopped to ask your opinion. Color is color—it all goes together, my prince. Climb aboard, Kiora. Let’s see if I met your requirements.”
Alcander pushed himself back up, dusting off. “You required this?”
“Not the colors, or the, um…” She eyed Drustan. “Combination.”
“You said fast and comfortable.” Drustan stretched his neck to indicate the fur on his back. “You have comfort.” He then flapped his large wings. “And speed. The rest is travel entertainment.”
“Of course.” Kiora grinned, climbing onto Drustan’s back. “Wow.” She patted the fur around her. “This is comfortable.” It was like sitting on a down comforter—maybe two.
“Are we ready?” Drustan asked.
Lomay hobbled over. “Good luck, Kiora. We will be doing all we can here.”
“Thank you.”
Grabbing her hand, he kissed it. “You are more than I could have ever imagined.”
Kiora blushed as Lomay hobbled away.
Emane came up next. “I am going to tell you something and I don’t want you to say anything. Do you understand?” His voice was gruff, his eyes glued to the ground.
“All right, I—”
“No,” Emane said, holding up his finger. “Nothing.” Taking a deep breath, he looked into her eyes. “I love you, Kiora.”
“I—”
“Again,” he interrupted her, placing a finger over her lips. “Not a word. Just—be safe.” He walked away, shoving his hands in his pockets without so much as a hug, kicking at the grass as he left. Kiora wasn’t sure if it was because he was fearful of her magic or just hurt. Either way, it felt like a hole had been punched through her.
Alcander stood awkwardly as Emane strode past him.
“Come on, Alcander!” Drustan yelled. “We don’t have all day.”
Alcander came over, shaking his head. “Hurry back—these people need you.”
“And what about you? Do you need me?” She blushed at her own boldness, but there was a hole that had just been ripped through her, aching to be filled.
Alcander pulled her down to him, kissing her and releasing a rush of magic that hummed the answer through her veins.
“I am right here, you know,” Drustan said dryly.
Kiora jerked away from Alcander, heat flushing her face.
“Take care of her, Shifter.”
“Always. Besides, I can’t lose her now—you and Emane would kill me.”
Kiora looked guiltily over her shoulder as they flew away. Alcander stood in front of the doors, his arm crossed, his hair blowing back behind his shoulders. She had to make a choice.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Mutual Respect
EMANE STRETCHED, PUSHING HIS blanket down around his waist. The cool air on his bare chest helped chase away the grogginess. Yesterday had been a long day. After Kiora left, he had spent the day in the meeting room with Alcander and Lomay, going over maps and estimating numbers in each of the camps, trying to figure out how many they had to fight and how many weapons they would need, as well as arguing over the need for horses. It seemed that horses were considered useless, as the magical beings riding them passed so much magic in the heat of combat that the horses usually died. Emane pointed out that the only reason they were useless was because of magic, and if no one had magic, it would be advantageous to be higher than their enemies. Alcander said he would work on procuring some more suitable creatures, but would settle for horses if none could be found.
The amount of weaponry they needed was staggering, and the enormity of the project was only lessened by the fact that they would have magic to help with the preparations until the actual battle. They had not come to a conclusion on where the training would take place. The camps were spread apart to reduce the danger of the Shadow’s forces accidentally discovering more than one camp. To travel from camp to camp seemed like an enormous waste of time, but to gather the army as a whole would be a challenge. To move the thousands of rebels across the land without being discovered would be a small miracle in and of itself, but even more than that, it presented the danger of being discovered before they were ready. If that happened, it would result in a complete annihilation of their forces. And that was if they could find a suitable spot to gather in the first place. A simple cave would not be large enough, and using a whole valley was out of the question. He lay there, mulling over possible solutions, but could not come up with one that Alcander had not already refused or refuted.