by Walls, Devri
“How can I forget them?”
“I do not know, but sometimes we have to forget or we can’t move on.”
Lomay groaned, stretching out his back. “I think I shall go and wait for Arturo. We should have a few minutes before it is time to go.”
Emane sat drumming his fingers on the table long after Lomay had left. Lomay had kept the other painting uncovered and his eyes traveled over it. It depicted Kiora with her hand outstretched, Lomay falling beneath her. His body was blurred, washing away like a drawing in the sand. Finally, he turned to stare at the tapestry. Although the scene was covered, he could still see it in his mind’s eye. He tried to think of every scenario that might come to pass, anything that might help. He ran through different beginnings and different endings before scrambling to his feet to search the room for paper.
Sitting at one of the other tables, Emane wrote, pouring his heart onto paper. After he finished, he read over his work. Satisfied, he pulled back the edge of the tapestry, using his elbow to knock a hole in the plaster wall. Rolling his letter into a tube, he slid it into the hole.
As he walked outside, the Pegasus’ eyes were trained on him. Emane was fairly certain Arturo had heard his most recent thoughts, the ones he had written in the letter.
Arturo, can I ask for your help?
Arturo nodded.
You know what to do?
Arturo nodded again before bowing his head to the ground.
Thank you.
“Let’s go, my boy.” Lomay said, slapping him on the shoulder. “We have no time to lose.”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Castles of Illusion
DRUSTAN LANDED THE THREE far enough away from the villages to avoid tripping any magical traps. As she slid off Drustan’s back, Kiora looked at the valley ahead. Many of the villages had more people than Meros, and there were several within close proximity of each other. She felt thousands of threads, and each would be willing to kill her—with pleasure.
“Are you sure we can’t fly over…” Before she could finish, several red balls of magic shot upwards, exploding and sending out tiny bits of magic in all directions.
“I’m sure,” Alcander said. “Let’s get this over with.”
Kiora eyed the village warily as she summoned the book of Creators, handing it to Alcander.
He flipped through the pages before handing it back with distaste. “This one.”
She scanned the spell. “It doesn’t look so bad.”
Alcander snorted. “We shall see if you feel the same way in a minute.”
“It says I should touch whatever we need to alter. What are we changing?”
“Whatever it takes to make me unrecognizable.”
Kiora touched his hair, whispering the incantation. His hair changed from blond to jet black, the color flowing over his head as if she had poured paint over him.
That wasn’t so bad. She glanced back at the book as Alcander sighed. Looking up, she noticed that his hair had returned to normal.
“Did you read the rest of the spell?”
“Yes.”
Alcander pursed his lips before flipping the page and tapping the other side.
Kiora quickly read it. “What? This can’t be right.”
“It is. Lomay has decided you’re ready to use more difficult spells. They require concentration to keep the spell in place, and a large amount of magic. It is why they are rarely used.”
Kiora snapped the book shut. “I am supposed to wrap my thread while concentrating on keeping both our disguises in place while we march through that?” She pointed across the valley.
Alcander only offered an expectant gaze.
She looked at Drustan, who was calmly picking his fingernails. She huffed, setting her book on the ground. “Teach me how to wrap my thread first.”
“Are you sure? It means you will have to hold on to it longer.”
“I know. But if I don’t get that under control, I will lose the spell.”
“Very well. Close your eyes.”
Kiora did as she was told, remembering very clearly the red eyes and slashing claws that came the last time she opened her eyes during this spell. She would not be opening them this time.
“Do you remember the incantation?”
“Yes.” Kiora balled her fists, steeling herself for what she was about to do. Muttering the incantation, she clenched her jaw as the flood of icy evil wrapped itself around her, pushing and pulling at her, trying to sink its way deep into her soul.
Feelings tore through her, dark and angry and fighting with her very existence—contrary to everything she was. She threw her head back and screamed.
“Kiora.” Alcander’s voice was anxious and sounded very distant through the roaring in her ears.
Bending over, she shoved her fists in her stomach, trying to hold herself together. “I can’t…do this!” she gasped.
In her weakness, she could feel evil trying to do exactly what Alcander had warned her about on her first attempt. It was pushing at her, trying to slip inside, not content just to wrap her thread. It wanted to turn her thread and possess it.
The pain was excruciating, the Wings of Arian times a hundred—maybe more. It was unbearable.
“Alcander!” she cried. She felt him grab at her, but he didn’t speak the incantation to release her and she could not remember it. It had been he who had spoken it last time—she didn’t even know how it began. “Please, help me!”
Kiora.
His words rang through her mind, strong and calming.
Alcander? What was he doing?
Kiora, feel me. Focus.
Taking gasping breaths and fighting through the darkness, she focused in on his mind, wide open before her. She saw herself pulling back her hood, the first time Alcander had ever seen her. She felt his heart race, the instant desire he had for her, his confusion at the response. She saw herself through his eyes, standing up to him, seeing straight through him when no one else could. She felt love grow. She saw her own strength, a strength she struggled to see in herself, and she marveled at his willingness to open himself up to her like this. Grabbing on to his faith in her, she shoved back at the evil pressing around on all sides. It pushed back harder. She dropped to her knees.
You are stronger than this. You have saved Meros, defeated Dralazar, escaped the Shadow. You can do this. His words came laced with so many other things: love, worry, a little fear.
Stumbling to her feet, she grabbed his arms, opening her eyes and focusing on his. In a sea of dark, swirling hate, red eyes, and claws, his blue eyes shone clear, urging her through this.
“Push it back, Kiora. Make it bend to your will. Force it to wrap your thread,” he said evenly.
Gulping, she pushed back again with everything she had, imagining it wrapping her thread. The force lessened.
“That’s right,” Alcander said. “More.”
Again she pushed and finally the black around her faded, the red eyes focusing in on her, narrowing and then vanishing. She was left gasping for air, her thread wrapped in horrific evil.
Alcander relaxed. “You did it.”
Kiora frowned. “I…did.” She wanted to feel proud of herself, but couldn’t. “Why do I feel so angry?” It simmered all around her, just waiting to explode.
“That’s the evil. You have controlled it, but it will influence your emotions as long as you are under it.”
Kiora shuddered. “I don’t like this. Let’s get the rest of it over with.” Picking up the book, she scanned the incantation again, fighting the urge to throw the book at a tree. This anger was ridiculous. Was this how others felt inside? She could hardly imagine.
She touched Alcander’s hair again, sending black flowing down it. She moved to his face, touching his nose first. It flattened under her touch and he grunted as if she had punched him, his eyes watering as he blinked furiously.
“Stop being such a baby!” she snapped.
His eyes jolted open.
; “I’m sorry. I…” The spell started to fade and Alcander yelped as his nose began to protrude again. Kiora pulled her focus back, keeping the spell active. “I’m not used to feeling this way. This anger is…” Shaking her head, she put her fingers on his lips, thinning them out before making his forehead a little taller. “Drustan?” Kiora asked. “Is this enough?”
“I wouldn’t recognize him.”
“I don’t know how long I can keep this all together. Both of you get ready while I adjust myself.”
Alcander spoke the incantation to wrap his own thread while Drustan morphed into a mix of human and Tavean she had never seen him use before. Short, squatty, unattractive, and easily forgettable.
She turned her white streak dark brown to match the rest of her hair and then moved to her face. When she lengthened her nose, it felt like someone had grabbed the bone and was pulling it out of her skull with pliers. Tears sprang to her eyes and Alcander yelled her name as her concentration faltered. She focused, trying to ignore the grating pain in her face. She was beginning to wonder if Lomay had seriously overestimated her.
“What else?”
“Widen your eyes,” Drustan said. “And lengthen your chin. That should do it.”
“Oh, is that all?” Kiora grumbled, resisting the urge to throw a bolt of magic at him for the suggestion. The second she touched the sides of her eyes, it felt as if someone had inserted sticks under her eyelids, prying them wider as the bones shifted in her head. Hurriedly, she touched her chin and clenched her teeth as the bones in her chin jutted out. The pain in her face slowly faded as the bones settled into place.
A deliberate shove in her mind refocused her attention to the evil wrapping her thread. It had sensed her weakness during the pain and was pushing in again, trying to take over. Shoving it back in place, she said to the others, “Come on.”
The three marched out from under their concealment and straight toward the village. The streets were narrow, with doorways from the small dwellings spilling out on each side. Creatures yelled at each other down streets and through windows. A fight broke out behind them shortly after they passed by a group of Taveans and Shifters. She looked over her shoulder just as a Tavean threw a Shifter across the street and into the side of a house. Several wooden shingles rained down on his head, insults ringing out as the Shifter began to turn into something tall with large claws.
“Eyes forward,” Alcander murmured at her side. “Don’t look at anything too long. You already stand out.”
“What do you mean, I stand out?” Discreetly scanning the area, she noticed that more than one set of eyes were trained on her, each looking away as she caught their gaze.
“Your thread is powerful—they are wondering who you are. Most threads of your strength are known to them.”
Someone reached out, touching her arm. She whirled on the strange Tavean. “Get your hands off me!”
The Tavean put his hands up in a gesture of no harm, but stepped in closer. “I don’t believe we have met.”
“No, we haven’t,” she snapped. “And we aren’t going to now.” She stormed off, Alcander and Drustan on her heels.
“That was…convincing,” Drustan said from her left.
“I wasn’t trying to be convincing,” she said. “I am just so angry. I hate this.”
They had almost made it through the village when Alcander froze. She turned around to question him before following his steely gaze.
The Tavean in the middle of the road was handsome. His leather shirt was open, exposing a muscular chest. Hanging on a cord around his neck was a fang as long as Kiora’s hand. He exuded an air of danger without even trying. His eyes glittered red and his black hair hung down to the middle of his back. His posture was equally as proud as Alcander’s.
“Who is that?” Kiora whispered.
The vein in Alcander’s neck was tight and strained, his jaw clenching as a flash of red passed through his eyes. That scared her more than anything she had ever seen, so much so that she nearly lost hold of the spell disguising them. The bones in her chin slid back to their old shape. She grappled to regain control and painfully snapped the bones into place. Kiora prayed the change had been small enough that no one had noticed.
Alcander started forward, murder written on his face. Drustan grabbed his arm but Alcander shook him off, firing a spell that hit right beside Drustan’s foot and sending dirt spraying in all directions.
“That was a warning, Shifter. Touch me again and I won’t miss.”
A few people turned their direction, but most moved on without a second look.
“Al— ” Kiora stopped before she blew their cover. She ran in front of him. “What is wrong with you?”
He grabbed both her arms so tightly that she winced, and then he opened up a memory to her. The Tavean sat astride Alcander’s ravaged mother. He delivered the killing blow.
“I will end him,” Alcander seethed as he closed his mind again.
Drustan started toward Alcander, but Kiora held up her hand. Drustan froze, glaring at Alcander’s back. She had to get them out of here before someone got killed.
“You can’t do this.”
Alcander went to move around her and she sidestepped, pushing her hand into his chest. “Listen to me. I know you want—” She breathed out through her nose. “Hell, I want to right now.” Between the anger and his memories, she wanted to blow a hole through the Tavean. Murder—a thought that had never been anything but horrifying was now riddled with appeal. “But if we do that, we are not walking out of here alive. I won’t be able to hold this spell in a fight—you know it and I know it. Your nose is already reverting back to its old shape. I am losing hold on it. If this fails and you are recognized, everything will be lost. Lomay is waiting with the women and children you have sworn to protect. Don’t do this! Not today.”
The Tavean and the group he was with had changed direction, talking amongst themselves.
“King Aimon sent word—the preparations are almost in place,” the one who had killed Alcander’s mother said to his companions as they passed. “Then the Shadow will track down the remaining resistance.”
The others laughed as the Tavean stopped, turning to face Alcander whose angry gaze was still glued to him. “Do you have a problem?”
Alcander’s jaw tightened as his fingers twitched at his sides.
“Hey!” Drustan yelled from behind them. “Are you going to finish what you started, Tavean?” He held out his arms in a challenge.
Alcander turned slowly, his eyes fixating on Drustan in murderous frustration.
“What? You are good with killing women and children, but a Shifter is too much for you?” The way he emphasized “women and children,” Kiora knew exactly what he was doing—reminding Alcander of the stakes.
The Tavean Alcander so desperately wanted to kill laughed before sauntering away to rejoin his friends.
Kiora grabbed his arm. “We are leaving. Now!”
Drustan followed them as she pulled Alcander out of camp. Once over the hill, she threw a bubble a second before she dropped the spell. She and Alcander both grunted, falling to the ground in pain as their faces jerked back into place.
Alcander peeled himself up as he broke the enchantment that had called the evil to them. He gave a reluctant sidelong glance at Drustan. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” With a glint in his eyes, Drustan added, “Do you mind if I apply your ‘thank you’ to all of the other times you should have said it?”
Alcander helped Kiora up. “Yes, I mind.”
Drustan shrugged. “It was worth a try.”
“Your eyes,” Kiora said. “They turned red for a second.”
Alcander looked away. “I wasn’t prepared to see him. It…it broke through.”
“Are you all right now?”
Alcander nodded.
“Are you sure?” Drustan asked. “We can’t show you the entrance to this city if you are going to turn on us.”
�
��That murderer is still alive, and your head is still attached.” He cocked his head to the side. “Answer your question?”
“Oh, good—Alcander is back. I don’t know what I would have done if he had suddenly started thanking me incessantly. That would have been unbearable.”
“Who is King Aimon?” Kiora asked.
“Aimon is my uncle.” Alcander said, making it very clear that he had omitted the title of “king” on purpose. “It looks like the Shadow is prepared to come out of hiding to help her forces.”
“How long do you think we have?”
“I don’t know. But once the Shadow starts roaming, no one is safe. The barriers will all fall—every hideout will be discovered.”
Kiora turned to the black castle that loomed across the meadow between the village and the lake. “Not every one.”
Drustan came up next to her. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. Nestor sealed the magic with his death. It is immune to her talisman.”
“Well then, what are we waiting for?” Drustan said so cheerily she wanted to smack him.
Kiora reached out for threads. “You are right, Alcander. There is only one thread coming from the castle—an Illusionist.”
“Yes. A powerful one, by the feel of it,” Alcander said.