Starbright: The Complete Series

by Hilary Thompson

  “Calm yourself. I’m not here to hurt you. I don’t have to be in your bed to do that.”

  Still, he rises from the bed, stepping back a few feet. He watches patiently as I flail to push away the mound of blankets.

  “Wh-why did you do that?” I whisper, my throat too hoarse for more. I’m not sure if I’m speaking about him lying next to me, or the incident in the courtyard.

  “I want you to become proficient with your powers in time to meet the True Prophet. Otherwise, the Three Sisters will simply devour you. As entertaining as that might be, I prefer to have you alive when they leave.”

  He bends and retrieves a blanket which has fallen to the floor, then turns and leaves the room. I am completely alone, except for the memories of the charred remains of the guard who was simply following orders, and the crowned Destroyer who was touching me as tenderly as a lover might.

  What the guard did was wrong, but what I did wasn’t exactly Justice, either.

  What Hade did was bizarre, but what I felt wasn’t exactly revulsion, either.

  I know immediately that I cannot tell Lexan what happened in the courtyard. He would certainly try to exact revenge on Hade. Even as I recognize this, my heart sinks. I can’t have the selfish luxury of secrets - not if we are truly going to work together.

  Just then the door bangs open and Lexan rushes through, skidding to a stop when he sees me next to the bed.

  “What happened? Ama came to find me in the training room!”

  I blink at him, sinking back onto the bed. “Who is Ama?”

  “The servant girl. Sorry, I thought I told you. She wouldn’t say it, but she pointed to the letters on one of my books.”

  “Ama,” I say softly. Leave it to Lexan to coax the girl’s name from her mute lips.

  “So what happened?”

  “I was training, but it wasn’t going very well. The wood was wet and it wouldn’t burn and Hade kept asking for more…” I trail off, having no idea how to describe the horror of my morning.

  “All I did was train with my bow and arrow, plus some running. I wonder if Hadeon even knows I can do something with air. That would be a bit of luck if he didn’t know. Are you okay? Trea?”

  I open my eyes and find him staring down at me. I glance down at my arms and I realize I’m hugging myself.

  “I-I did something awful,” I whisper. “I killed a man. My guard.”

  Lexan opens his mouth but then closes it, sitting cross-legged next to me on the bed. He waits.

  “Hade was there and he made the guard…he made him attack me. I panicked and the fire was so much and I didn’t know how to stop it, Lex.”

  “Shh…” he reaches to brush my hair from my face and I flinch back, remembering how Hade had done the same thing less than an hour ago. Lexan tilts his head at me and holds my eyes.

  You can tell me. Whatever it is, we can make it through together.

  I lower my eyes, not sure if he’ll feel the same way when I tell him.

  “He told the guard to defile me,” I say finally, whispering the ugly word. I don’t look at Lexan again, afraid that I’ll be able to see something different in his eyes again - that he’ll think less of me now.

  “He…he grabbed at my stomach. And more. And I panicked,” I repeat.

  “Then he deserved what he got.”

  “No, Lex. He was just following orders.”

  “Some orders shouldn’t be followed. That man had free will to follow or not.”

  “But if he had refused, I’m sure Hade would have sent him to the arena. Dead either way.”

  “Perhaps. But just because death is the end result doesn’t mean the choice can’t be made. And just because you’re ordered to do something doesn’t make it right.”

  I can’t speak around the lump in my throat - is he referring to my own choice to burn the man? Hade had ordered me to do it, but that doesn’t make it right.

  I never quite imagined how hard it would be to actually make the decisions between what is right and what is wrong - how much confusion there would be in dispensing Justice.

  “There’s more,” I say after a few minutes of quiet. I see Lexan’s hand clench the blanket, but he doesn’t speak.

  “I blacked out again, like I did that day at Madna’s. When I woke up, Hade was here…in the bed.” Lexan’s hands twist the blanket more. “He left right before you got here.”

  The blanket rips under his grip.

  “Trea, you can’t let him get to you.” He lets a breath out slowly. “I can take Stian, but not him, Trea. Please. Not him.” I can’t bear to look up, even though Lexan has leaned forward and his hands are on my shoulders, imploring me to look at him. I think I know what Lexan is afraid of, but if I meet his eyes then it will become real - too real to bear.

  “Am I interrupting?” Hade’s smooth voice floats toward us.

  Lexan immediately drops his hands and slumps to the bed, keeping his back to Hade. I wonder if he ever really left, or if he has been hiding somewhere, watching us.

  I look up and Hade’s black gaze makes me flinch. He misses nothing, I am sure of it. Behind him, the door to my room opens silently again and Commander Charon enters, followed by a guard bearing a tray so wide he must turn sideways to enter. He sets the tray on my table and exits as swiftly as possible.

  Charon sits and begins to lift the covers from the dishes of food, piling a plate greedily without waiting for any invitation.

  “You should not have been in here earlier,” I say to Hade, putting as much force as I can into my words. Admittedly, it isn’t much.

  He does me the favor of not laughing, though I can see a smile straining the edges of his pouty lips.

  “Commander Charon has expressed the desire to train you as well,” he says instead, addressing Lexan’s back. “Balance is important in an army as well.”

  Lexan stiffens and stands, turning to bow his head slightly. Charon lifts a skewer of meat in answer.

  “He will come collect either of you anytime he wishes, and deliver you to our various training rooms.”

  Lexan snorts. “Do I need to give him a coin for safe passage?”

  Hade smiles widely. “You are delightful! How do you know so much?”

  “I read a bit,” Lexan answers. I notice a muscle in his jaw tic.

  Hade throws his head back and fairly shakes with laughter. “Delightful,” he repeats when he has gained breath again. He runs a hand over his hair, ensuring it is still in place. “Come. Let’s sit and eat, and I will tell you all of my wonderful plans.”

  I eye Lexan as we follow Hade into the sitting area. He shakes his head slightly, indicating that we need to talk more. I make a mental note to ask Lexan exactly what he’s been reading. For the moment, however, we must listen to Hade.

  I eat little, my nose refusing to relinquish the stench of burning flesh from the morning. Each piece of charred meat reminds me too much of the man I murdered today.

  Hade again tastes each dish, but mostly he sucks the juice from segments of orange, placing the withered pulp back onto the silver tray. “I understand you fear the leader of Asphodel, and the leader of Hebron. Of course, they are no match for the armies of Tartarus, even if they managed to set aside ego and work together. The other Tribes are no worry, and Elysium cares nothing for the troubles of this world. They stand alone at the edge of the sea.”

  He pauses and peels another orange. The burst of scent in the air reminds me of when we met and I noticed his sweet, slightly floral smell. Of course, I had never smelled an orange then.

  “Charon, where does a ruler’s strength come from?” Hade asks.

  Charon grunts around a mouthful then swallows quickly. “Unity.”

  “Precisely. I plan to unify the three cities under one ruler. Myself, obviously. And I’ll include that ragtag bunch of Tribes as well - as a favor, of course. We need unity to rebuild our world. Right now, we’re so scattered that we don’t even know if anyone on the other sides of the earth survived.�
��

  I choke on the water I’ve been sipping. Of course. I’ve always assumed the whole world was dead, but since leaving Asphodel’s sealed cave, I’ve already found more living people than I ever imagined. Why shouldn’t there be more?

  “There used to be a saying in this old land we cling to: as divided people, we fall, but as united people, we can rise. Or something like that.”

  He smooths his napkin, dipping each finger in the wash bowl and drying it meticulously.

  I sneak a look at Lexan to confirm what I’m hearing. He nods slightly: this whole speech sounds too much like Keirna. Hade might want the strength of unity, but he plans to use it to continue his rule as a dictator.

  “So what do you need us for?” I ask, keeping my tone light.

  “Power, obviously,” Hade says.

  “And fear,” Charon adds. “Sure, everyone is scared of Lord Hadeon the Destroyer, but think how they would cower before the Maiden of Justice! You could learn to see every dark thing they have done.”

  He doesn’t seem to notice how Hade glowers at him for a split second before the look is gone, pressed away. Hade strokes a finger across his lips absently. “You are right, perhaps. The people in my arena are there because they have been caught, and it is human nature to assume one will never be caught. That is why so many people sin. Because they have no imagination.”

  “But Justice comes for everyone,” Lexan says, finishing Hade’s train of thought.

  My stomach flips at the idea of judging not only the criminals, but each individual person. Looking into their souls and determining how good they are, and how evil.

  Who am I to have such responsibility?

  What if I judge unjustly? Innocent people will be hurt, or guilty ones will go free.

  “We will go now.” Hade stands quickly. Charon adds a few more items to his plate before shuffling to the door. “Charon will collect you again soon, darling. I trust that next time, the wood will burn before the man?”

  And with that threat, and a mean little smirk, Hade saunters from the room, the door clicking shut behind him.

  I close my eyes and slump back into the pillows of the couch, trying to force a calm that may never come again.

  Charon does indeed collect me that afternoon, bringing me to the same courtyard. Wind has dispersed some of the ash, but the pile mostly remains: a gruesome motivator. I call fire again and again, my fear and anger enough for now.

  “Progress?” Hade calls as he strolls into the courtyard. I’m feeling dizzy and chilled to my very center, despite the hot air and the sun beaming down on us.

  “She has consistency in temperature and size of the flame. Hot enough to burn the damp wood, but only a few feet of range,” Charon says.

  Hade watches me as I sway on my feet. He twists the toggles on his long white robe, turning them so each bar is perfectly horizontal.

  “That will be all for today. Tomorrow, see what she can do with the boy. And Trea,” he steps a few feet close, “I expect drastic improvement each day. We don’t have time for your human weaknesses. I need the strength of the stars.”

  He lets his eyes skim down my face, then the outline of my body in the fitted black clothing. He smiles and turns to leave.

  “Off with you, then,” Charon says, waving impatiently at the new guard to lead me away.

  SIXTEEN

  Today I found a most disturbing piece of evidence that supports my fears that Lakessa was not honest with the original people of Asphodel. Our prayer to the Fates lists only one Maiden: Send the Lady of Justice with her burnished Scale of Balance. But in the scraps of old books our family has saved from before the Sickness, a different prayer remains: Send the Lady of Justice with her burnished Scale of Balance. Send her sister, Lawfulness, with her garlands of roses. Send her sister Peace, crowned and seated on a glittering throne. Some of our prayers support this trinity, but they are worded to seem like Lawfulness and Peace are the results of Justice. This older prayer leads me to believe they are actual beings, and perhaps part of another prophecy.

  Secret Journal of First Leader Firene

  When I stumble into my room, Ama is there waiting. She leads me to the bath, steamy and frothing with bubbles. I sink in gratefully, letting the warmth gradually overpower the cold in my skin.

  I wonder if using too much of my fire could take everything from me - even my life.

  I duck beneath the bubbles again, holding my breath until my lungs scream for air. When I bob to the surface, a blurry figure stands near the tub. I dip lower, water covering my neck, and wipe the bubbles from my lashes.

  Lexan waits, his back turned to me.

  “Are you okay?” I ask.

  He turns, his face full of emotions - I see fear, then relief, then uncertainty. “Are you?” he asks, coming to sit on the edge of the tub.

  I nod. “This afternoon was better. Tomorrow he’ll bring you, too.”

  Lexan’s mouth turns down in unhappiness. “I was hoping to stall that. I’d rather not let him know that we are more powerful together. Although it shouldn’t take him long to figure out. This afternoon I found that he knows I have some power over the air.”

  “I don’t want you to help me kill people,” I say, glancing around to make sure the bubbles are still dense enough to hide my body.

  “I don’t want you to help Hade kill people,” Lexan says with a half-smile. “But if it’s going to happen, I should be there with you. For you. You aren’t alone in this prophecy, Trea. Why do you keep trying to do everything alone?”

  I look down again, trailing my fingers across the water, popping a few of the larger bubbles.

  “I’m supposed to be your Scale of Balance. Together we’re supposed to serve Justice - not just take lives. There’s something we’re all missing.”

  I close my eyes, letting this thought turn in my mind. It makes sense, but even if Lexan is wrong, I’m certain that Hade will continue to bring me people to practice killing.

  “I want to sneak out tonight,” I say, the idea forming as the words exit my mouth. “I want to see that bird girl again, and see if she talks. Hade said she wasn’t a prisoner, but she stays to keep the peace. He must have told us that for a reason.”

  Lexan nods. “I noticed that, too.”

  “Now get out of here so I can get dressed.”

  He grins but goes, and Ama appears with an armful of thick towels. When I’m dry and dressed, I enter the sitting area to find Lexan already eating from the silver tray.

  “Why do you think he put us in this room together?” I ask, pushing my wet curls to one side and selecting a warm, nutty-smelling roll.

  He shakes his head. “Who knows what’s behind his motivations. With the way he looks at you, I expected him to string me up in a dungeon somewhere.”

  I glance at him, my hand pausing in the buttering of my roll. “How does he look at me?”

  “You’ve seen it. You can’t miss it. He looks like…like he wants to devour you.” Lexan laughs without humor and stuffs a large bite in his mouth.

  “What do you think Stian and Zarea are doing?” I ask after a few silent minutes.

  The girl Ama appears by my side and touches a finger to my arm, so lightly I barely notice. Looking up, I see she holds a tiny brown bird in her palm. She gives a little bow, gesturing toward us, then the bird. As I bend closer to inspect it, the wings flutter in a jerky motion and the beak opens. A red light shines from inside its throat.

  “Metal!” I say, suddenly realizing what I’m looking at.

  Ama strokes the belly and the beak closes. The bird spreads its wings out, then up at an unnatural angle, meeting in the middle. She turns the bird around and I see the underside of the wings form a sort of screen. Lexan shifts to kneel behind me and we both gasp as a grainy, gray image flickers onto the screen.

  The picture moves like we are watching real people, and a dusky marketplace comes into focus. People mill around, bartering for items. Immediately I see a familiar form: Zarea’s
long dark hair and multi-colored skirts. A man next to her could be Stian, although I can’t see his face. A pair of guards faces them.

  “Is this tonight?” Lexan asks. Ama shakes her head and points behind her. “Last night?”

  She nods, pointing back at the screen. The guards appear to be asking questions. There is no sound with the moving images, but it’s clear that Stian is arguing.

  I curse under my breath, remembering how similar our costumes had been. We chose them on purpose, to give the illusion of a group of traveling musicians. But now I see how the matching colors were like a beacon to Hade’s guards.

  The guards lead Stian and Zarea away from the market and the image fades from the small screen.

  “Are there other birds like this?” Lexan asks. Ama nods. She spreads her arms wide and gestures around, as though a flock of the birds might be surrounding us this very minute. Uneasily, I remember the shiny brown bird I glimpsed our first night. Was it a spy too?

  “Why can’t you just talk to us? You know we won’t hurt you!” I say, my voice sharp in frustration.

  “Trea,” Lexan warns, his hand on my arm.

  Ama looks down at the floor, her cheeks red. Her fingers stroke the little bird absently. Then she seems to make a decision and she stands straighter, touching our arms briefly to gain our attention. She lifts her veil and opens her mouth wide.

  My heart constricts as I see why she doesn’t speak: she has no tongue.

  Lexan places a hand over hers. “Are all the servants like this?”

  She shrugs, a tear slipping from her eye. She yanks her hand from Lexan’s and scrubs at the tear. Depositing the bird on the white couch cushion, Ama turns and hurries back to her tiny room, shutting the door loudly.

  I feel horrible, as though I had caused her pain on top of embarrassment.

  “Trea, you can’t blame yourself for every bad thing.”

  Lexan’s words break into my thoughts, as though he knows exactly what I’m thinking. And of course he does. He has always had that ability. He turns the bird over in his hand, examining each part of it. The entire bird is jointed just the way a real bird is - it must move exactly like one.