It was a bit busy, with more than a few people wanting to cross, and a line formed up to the side. Hawes went ahead of the group to buy them a ticket, and everyone took the chance to get out of the saddle and stretch their legs a little. Mei Li felt practically bow-legged after so much time in the saddle and was thankful to be on her own two feet. Even if it was only for a few minutes.
As she stood there, she heard whispers from ahead and behind.
“—not sure if it’s a good idea to go west—”
“—they say no one can stop him—”
“—looks mad—”
Shunlei turned, apparently hearing the same, and gave a bow of the head. “Excuse me for eavesdropping, but what are you speaking of?”
The two behind them in line looked to be farmers and likely brothers—the pronounced high brow made them very similar in appearance. The taller of the two cleared his throat, giving a quick bow in return.
“Master, it’s just that we’ve heard stories from our uncle. He’s a trader, always brings word up to us about all that goes on. He said it’s not safe to go near the mountains right now. Said there’s some madman north of Bader’s capital who’s destroying anything and everything in his path. Our uncle claims he got a glimpse of the man and said he was holding a sword and looked mad, absolutely mad. He was laughing even as he was killing.”
Mei Li grimly listened. So. Ghost General’s Sword was nearby and active. “Did he give you a firmer location than that?”
“Well, he was passing through the capital and on the way back to here,” the shorter, and likely younger, of the two offered. He scratched at his shaggy brown hair and gave her a shrug. “I don’t remember him saying precisely where. But it would have been somewhere along that route.”
“Just that tells me a great deal. Thank you.” Mei Li turned immediately and moved past the horses, searching for the rest of her team.
Hawes spotted her and stopped mid-sentence, cutting his conversation with Melchior short upon seeing her face. It must have said something, and certainly she felt very determined and grim. “Lady Mei, is there an issue?”
“I think I’ve just found the cursed sword we were looking for. At least, from the description, I’m fairly sure it’s the sword. The man who passed the information along said his uncle had seen a mad, sword-wielding lunatic slaughtering people and laughing. He’s somewhere just north of the capital.”
Hawes’ brows drew together in a dark frown. “If it’s somewhere north of the capital…” He trailed off, thinking hard. “That could be anywhere between a day or two days ahead of us on the road.”
“Yes, I know.” She could tell what he was thinking, as the words were practically written across the man’s face. “You want to send Shunlei ahead.”
With a grimace, Hawes shifted uneasily on his feet. “I’m not in the habit of separating a courting couple, but…”
“No, this only makes sense. With the proper rope talisman, he might be able to hook the host of the sword and stop him long enough for us to catch up.” Mei Li didn’t like the idea of Shunlei going ahead either, but for an entirely different reason. Humanity didn’t think of dragons as allies, not yet. If he was seen attacking another human, odds weren’t in his favor. Someone might try and stop him—or do worse than just try and stop him.
A hand settled at her back as Shunlei joined the conversation. “I think it’s best to at least try it. I hate to think of how many innocents he’s killing. And if someone else stops him before I can get there, that’s something you need to know. If nothing else, I can go and scout out the situation.”
Mei Li bit her bottom lip. All of that was true. So why did she have this uneasy feeling in her gut? In terms of flying, he could get there well ahead of them. It might take her a full two days just to catch up. At the same time, it was too far of a distance for her to perch in his arm like she normally did. Was it the distance that bothered her? Sending him ahead without any backup?
Shunlei kissed her temple in reassurance. “It’s fine.”
“I’d feel better if you went, even if it’s to scout ahead and report back,” Hawes admitted with splayed hands.
“I would as well,” Melchior agreed with a nod.
Shunlei seemed to expect those answers. To Mei Li, he requested, “Give me the rope, just in case.”
“Let me re-spell it. I can change the spell so that when it’s within a certain range of the cursed sword, it will activate on its own. You’ll just need to release it.” Mei Li turned toward Peanut, already re-designing the spell in her head. This would take several minutes, but they had time until it was their turn for the ferry.
Upon reaching her horse, she found that Kiyo had already retrieved the rope and was re-working the talisman woven into the fibers.
“She heard you,” Nord explained quietly. “She wants to give it a boost, just in case.”
Since Kiyo’s magic was more powerful, Mei Li let her work without a qualm. Instead, she focused on Shunlei. “You’ll be careful? It’s alright to drop the rope around the target and then retreat. You don’t need to stay and keep an eye on him. It’ll hold for twenty-four hours, which should give us the time we need to reach you.”
“It’ll be fine, my love,” Shunlei assured her. “It’s not the first time I’ve tangled with magic.”
“It’s the first time you’ve tangled with magic without a mage being nearby,” she countered. “And you promise me that if it reaches twenty hours, and we’re still not there, you’ll come fetch me. We should be on the highway heading that direction, I’m sure you’ll be able to find me. I don’t want you trying to tackle that thing on your own.”
His head canted to the side, blue eyes narrowed. “But the magic you worked on me should protect me from the curse on the sword, correct?”
Mei Li shook her head in frustration. “I don’t know. I’ve never studied the sword in person, and the one record I read of it didn’t give much in the way of details. It’s a very insidious magic. It speaks to a man’s weaker nature or promises him great power to achieve his goals. The shield I gave you was meant for more direct attacks.”
His mouth pursed. “Well. That gives this problem an entirely new dimension. I’ll strive to keep my distance. I might well stay and guard the sword so it can’t tempt any other human.”
That was not what she wanted to hear. “No, Shunlei, it would be better to drop the trap and then retreat—”
“Doing so, and then leaving it unguarded, only leaves the possibility open for the sword to switch hosts. I do not think it wise.” Seeing her worry, he smoothed a hand down her hair, smile gentle. “Do not worry, I will guard it, but keep my distance as well. I will take human form as soon as I can to prevent people from thinking this is some nefarious work of a dragon.”
She really wished he wouldn’t, but Shunlei did precisely what he wished. He’d always been that way. “Alright, fine, but be careful.”
Mei Li regretted those words immensely. Twenty-three hours they’d been on the road, and still no sign of Shunlei. They pushed themselves and the horses hard, barely resting for four hours before re-saddling and getting back on the road. Still, through the exhaustion, worry ate at the back of her mind. She didn’t understand what had happened or why he’d not come back to her. They’d been traveling along the road, just as she’d said they would. Shunlei should have been able to find her.
If he’d left looking for her at all.
One scenario after another crashed through her mind. Mei Li really hoped none of them were true, but her mind seemed to fixate on them. Had he not been able to stop Ghost General’s Sword and was forced to battle it? Was he hurt? Was he stopped from fighting it by other people and was now chained down? Had Ghost General’s Sword somehow latched onto him? Was he at the curse’s mercy?
It could be any of that, or none of it—she had no way of knowing.
But she knew they were going in the right direction. That was very obvious. They passed bodies strewn off to the
side of the road, numerous injured being tended to by loved ones, and it killed Mei Li that they couldn’t stop. Couldn’t offer aid. But they did not have the time. They had to get to Shunlei before the rope’s magic wore off. As it stood, the magic was already dangerously weak and was probably incapable of caging Ghost General’s Sword for much longer.
A town rose in front of them, and even from here, she could see the smoke still rising in tendrils from between the roofs. It looked as if a small army had crashed through here. There were slash marks on every possible surface—even one through a stone corner of a building. The damage was incredible, especially considering it was just one sword that had caused it all.
The town wasn’t large, more of a stop for traders and merchants on the way to the capital. Barely fifty buildings in all, and Mei Li blessed that. It meant less possible casualties, for one, and she couldn’t get turned around in the streets while searching for Shunlei. Her seeking spell could only show a direction, much like a compass.
It took no time at all to get off the highway and through the main street, into the center of town. Clearing the last corner, she finally laid eyes on Shunlei.
For a second, a split second, relief threatened to overwhelm her. Shunlei sat on an upturned barrel in the center of an open courtyard. Damage had clearly been done here, as there were great rends in the paving stones, and the water fountain nearby spurted water at random through the ruined stones. A prone man wrapped in the rope lay not far from Shunlei’s feet. He lay with his back to her, so she couldn’t get a clear look at him. The sword was tangled up with him, though—she could see it half-tucked under his body.
Shunlei, for the first time ever, didn’t immediately greet her. He stared hard at the sword instead, his body unnaturally still.
“That,” Hawes said with a grunt, “does not look good. Shunlei?”
No response. Shunlei didn’t even twitch.
Mei Li saw from the corner of her eye that people watched warily from open windows and peeked out from behind their doors. They were clearly aware that this situation was a bad one and had no interest in getting any closer. She didn’t have that to contend with, at least.
It was a very small silver lining at the moment.
“I don’t know what’s going on here.” Melchior dropped out of the saddle with a grunt. “Lady Mei, what’s your opinion? Is Shunlei enthralled by the sword?”
“No.” She meant to say that with confidence, but it came out a trifle weak. “If he was really enthralled, it would be in his hand and he’d be swinging it around.”
“I’d say he’s on his way to being enthralled,” Kiyo put in. She was already reaching for her bag, readying talismans. “Mei, do we dare approach him?”
“I wouldn’t suggest it. But can you be ready to slap a quick seal on the sword?”
“Yes.”
That left her to handle Shunlei. Mei Li sucked in a deep breath and dismounted from Peanut. She had to approach this carefully, otherwise she’d upset whatever delicate balance was hanging right now. Right now, it looked to her as if Shunlei had stayed, as he said he would, to guard the sword from being picked up by someone else. After twenty-something hours, it might have found a way inside his head.
She stopped ten feet from him, to the side and away from the sword. “Shunlei?”
He half-turned toward her. “It calls to me, Mei.”
“I’m sure it does.” Oh, thank all the gods, he was still rational. “Can you ignore it and come to me? Let Kiyo seal it.”
“I’ve been trying to move for the past several hours. I wanted to go to you. I don’t trust my will right now. I’m barely keeping myself from lunging for it.”
Oh. Hence why he sat so very, very still. She cast her mind about for a solution.
His voice turned sing-song, eyes glazing over. “It wants me to wield it. It promises me great power if I wield it. Do you think I can tame the dragons if I do so?”
Chills raced over her skin. That was not her Shunlei. Whatever restraint held him in check was quickly fading. “No, I don’t think so. Shunlei? Dearest, can you focus on me?”
His eyes didn’t leave the sword. “It says I’ll need its power to attain all my goals. Do you think it’s right?”
She was losing him. A wave of terror hit her like nothing she had experienced before. Her hands shook, desperate to latch onto him, but she didn’t dare make any sudden moves. Swallowing around a dry throat, she cast her mind desperately for some way to draw his attention from the sword. “Beloved. Look at me.”
By degrees, Shunlei’s eyes came up to meet hers. An absent quality lingered there, as if his attention was still not wholly where he looked.
“You want to marry me, don’t you?”
“Yes,” he answered without hesitation.
“And I want to marry you. Why don’t you come to me so we can talk about it.”
A light flickered in his eyes before they glazed over again. “You have doubts, though. Doubts that we should court. You think I’ll regret things in the future. The sword keeps promising you’ll have no doubts once I use it. It promises that it will keep us together for eternity.”
Mei Li cursed her past self a thousandfold and aimed a mental kick that direction. She mentally cursed the sword, and its maker, while she was at it. Of course it latched onto every doubt and weakness lurking in the shadows of Shunlei’s mind. Mei Li paid no attention to their audience as she used every bit of honesty and sincerity to disarm the sword’s grasp on her man. “That’s nonsense. I’ve left all of those doubts behind.”
A bit more of himself came back into his face so he looked a little less like a puppet. “You have?”
“We have now. Shouldn’t we fully live in the present, before we worry over a future we have no control over? I want you now. You said you want to marry me. I want to marry you, too. Why depend on a sword for that when you can have me right this very moment? Come to me.”
She held out both hands, smiling at him, a silent plea.
Shunlei stared at her hands in something like awe. “We really can?”
“Yes.” It was working, but not enough to move him. And then she realized what she had been missing, the words she had been too afraid, too inexperienced, to say before. “You know, I love you a great deal. I love your intelligence, and your warm hands, and the sweet affection in your eyes when you look at me. I love it when I fly with you because it feels like we’re the only two people in the world in that moment.”
The corners of his mouth tilted up and a little more of himself came back to his face. “Yes, I love that too. You really feel that way?”
“Of course.” And she thought she knew how to prove it, one more thing that would appeal to the dragon side of him. Her throat was dry—this would be harder than usual to manage—but she put her heart and soul into it.
Mei Li thrummed. She mimicked the sounds of affection, of safety, but mostly of love. A deep, unparalleled love that knew no restrictions, no boundaries. Pushing aside all worries of the future, she thrummed to him as loudly as she could, desperate to reach him.
His eyes closed for a moment before re-opening. The fight was visible on his face, the war between what he wanted and what the sword said to him. Hesitantly, he stood gingerly, like an aging man with bad joints. Mei Li almost caught her breath, afraid he’d go for the sword after all, but she didn’t dare stop thrumming. She doubled her efforts, keeping her hands out and steady.
With both hands, he grasped hers, then took that last step in to rest his head against hers. With a sigh, he settled there, and for the first time, thrummed back. It was a richer, deeper tone that vibrated against the top of her head.
Kiyo lost not a second as she leapt forward and slapped not one, but two sealing talismans on the sword directly. Doing so had a direct reaction on Shunlei, who toppled forward like a marionette with its strings cut. Mei Li caught him by the shoulders, then dug in her heels when his body weight threatened to topple her.
Shunlei’s
arms came up weakly to hold her to him and he sighed, his head pillowed against her shoulder. “Thank you.”
Stroking his head, she promised him, “You’re not going ahead alone ever again.”
He gave a content hum, pleased at this promise, and passed out.
The mayor of the town was immensely grateful for their aid in stopping the rampage caused by Ghost General’s Sword. He especially had nothing but kind things to say for Shunlei, praising the man’s willpower and stalwart defense of the sword from any other careless hand. He offered them rooms not only in his house, but his daughter’s next door, and they accepted immediately. All of them were exhausted and barely functional.
Mei Li stayed with Shunlei, afraid of any aftereffects of that sword messing with his mind. She curled up next to him on the wide bed, the door cracked so that if something did happen, she could call out to either Nord or Hawes. But even though she intended to watch over him, her body betrayed her. She slept with the same soundness as a drowned log. Even her dreams were of sleeping.
A hand gently stroking hair from her face woke her. Mei Li blinked slowly awake, then smiled at the scene that greeted her. Shunlei lay on his side, watching her with a gentle smile on his face.
“Good morning,” he greeted softly.
Sighing, she caught his hand and pressed a kiss into the palm. “You’re well?”
“I’m fine. Mentally tired, still. I had no idea that a battle of wills for twenty hours could be so exhausting.”
She blinked at him, her mind tripping to full wakefulness. “Was it really twenty hours?”
“Something like it. Maybe not a full twenty.” Shunlei frowned a little, eyes going distant. “When I left you, it took me a few hours to find him. Then several frustrating minutes as he dodged in and out of buildings. I couldn’t just drop the rope as you’d told me to. Finally, he crossed the square and it was open enough ground. I dropped the rope, and it entangled him firmly. I was set to land, just watch for a while, with the thought I’d leave once I explained things to the people nearby. But after I landed, I saw the sword glowing still. I was afraid it might ensnare people once I left. I was right—it would have. It worked very hard to convince me to wield it.”
First of Tomes (The Tomes of Kaleria Book 2) Page 23