by Ben Wolf
It was a responsibility she’d been prepared for her entire life. Since she was old enough to first float among the clouds, she’d studied and trained and pushed herself to become the best leader she could possibly be. The day of her ascension to the throne had come earlier than expected, but she wouldn’t shy away from her birthright. Her people needed her.
Lilly waved her hand. “Enough, please. I haven’t done anything to deserve your allegiance.”
“The blood in your veins commands our allegiance.” General Balena stood to his full height, and the rest of the soldiers followed suit. “You are our leader now, Premieress. We exist to serve you, and by extension, the Sky Realm.”
So much power, so much authority. So much responsibility. Now, along with the weight of Falcroné’s and her parents’ deaths, she shouldered the destiny of the entire Sky Realm and its inhabitants, what few had survived the Saurians’ attack. And now she would lead them into battle again on Lumen’s behalf to overthrow—
The people. Her people. She couldn’t lead them to Lumen without first caring for them. How many hundreds—thousands—of refugees had she passed on her way back home? How many soldiers still wandered the skies, trying to decide whether to return to Aeropolis and fight or flee for their lives?
Too many for her to ignore them. Far, far too many.
The weight of her parents’ deaths and the secret her father had shared with her before he perished threatened to upend her resolve. He’d only entrusted her with the truth at the very end, when he’d absolutely had to, and he’d begged her not to reveal that truth to anyone.
Now the Aerostone lay somewhere nearby her father’s body, which was just one among numerous others, while even more of her people needed aid outside the four remaining walls of the Sky Fortress. But the way she yearned to help them was precisely the way her father had entreated her not to.
As if reading her thoughts, Kanton hovered toward her, no longer wearing his cape. Instead, he held it in his hands, wrapped around a lump of something. He’d covered the Aerostone, and now he extended it toward her, concealed within the shimmering Aerosilk fabric.
She accepted it from him, unsurprised when he continued hovering without his cape. Even by her father’s narrow definition of who was “worthy” to become a Wisp, Kanton had exceeded every qualification, particularly in loyalty. He’d deserved to become a Wisp, and now he was.
“General Balena,” she said. “Divide your men into groups. Send them out to gather our lost and wandering citizens. We cannot risk the Saurians finding them. Return them—all of them—to the Sky Fortress.”
“With respect, Premieress, that will take days. Perhaps weeks.” Captain Perine stepped forward. “It will diminish our chances to mount a successful counterattack on the—”
“We aren’t going to mount a counterattack on the Saurians,” Lilly interrupted. “At least not until we have ensured the well-being of our own people.”
Captain Perine hesitated. “But—the longer we wait, the weaker we will appear to—”
“My decision is final, Captain.” Lilly bristled. She didn’t recall any of the soldiers ever questioning her father in such a manner.
Captain Perine turned to General Balena. “General, I implore you. If we don’t—”
Steel flashed. Captain Perine froze in place with General Balena’s sword at his throat.
“If you ever dare question the Premieress’s commands again, I will personally cut out your tongue and force you to wear it as a necklace,” General Balena growled. “She is your ruler, your supreme leader, and your commander. You will heed her every word as if they came from the Overlord Himself. Crystal?”
A bead of sweat on Captain Perine’s forehead trickled down his jaw as he nodded. “Clear.”
General Balena released his grip on Captain Perine’s shoulder and sheathed his sword. He cast a long stare at Condor, who raised an eyebrow.
“Lilly.” Condor grinned at her, his piercing blue eyes alive with mischief. “Premieress. Excuse me.”
She narrowed her eyes at him, and even amid the destruction around them, she had to stifle a smile. “Yes?”
“Might I suggest we first send the soldiers throughout Aeropolis to clear out any remaining Saurian invaders and search for survivors here?”
Lilly nodded. He was right. “Yes. Make it so.”
As General Balena directed his captains to divide their men into groups for the search, Lilly caught Calum staring at her from the side of the room. He wore a sad smile and leaned against one of the marble pillars. If there was anyone in Kanarah who could empathize with her at this moment, it was him.
Still, she had work to do. People to help. Calum would also understand that. She left her feet and landed beside him.
He performed the Windgale salute and bowed his head.
“Stop. You’re embarrassing me.” She started smiling even before he raised his head.
His own smile reverted back to its sadder version. “Lilly, I—”
She flung her arms around him and pulled him close. Her tears flowed again, and with each heaving sob, she squeezed him tighter.
She wasn’t sure why she’d done it. Maybe it was that shared sense of heartache, or her connection to Calum, or that he couldn’t fly, so he’d been one of the few left behind with her—and she wasn’t going to embrace Axel under any circumstances ever again.
“I know, Lilly,” Calum whispered into her ear. It was all he said, and it was all she needed to hear. “I know.”
Axel clenched his teeth and exhaled hot air through his nostrils. If he could have incinerated Calum with fire from his eyes, he’d have done it by now.
Why was Lilly holding onto him? Axel had saved her life more times than Calum had. He’d been there for her more often, too.
Yes, Axel had screwed up the last time they were here, but that was in the past, and he’d apologized several dozen times since then. So what did she see in Calum that Axel didn’t also have?
Axel was stronger. Bigger, taller. A better fighter. Better-looking, of course. A real man, especially compared to Calum’s boyish appearance.
Axel knew he came off as gruff and even ornery at times, but he couldn’t help it. Besides, it was part of what made him unique. He was colorful. Vibrant. Interesting. And he didn’t take lip from anyone.
Calum? Boring. Aside from the whole seeing-Lumen-in-his-dreams thing, at least.
Really? They’re still holding each other? Axel clenched his teeth again.
“I wish you’d stop doing that.”
The voice jolted Axel out of his funk. Instinct whirled him around and moved his hand to the hilt of his sword, but he didn’t remove it from its sheath. He relaxed his grip when he saw Riley’s blue eyes, the only part of him still visible from the deep shadows in which he resided.
“Stop doing what?” Axel asked.
“Grinding your teeth. It’s annoying.”
Axel’s jaw tensed again.
“Like that. Stop it.”
“I’m just clenching my teeth.”
“Every time you do it, your teeth grind, and I can hear it from across the room.”
“Not my fault.”
Riley stepped out of the shadows, and Axel marveled at his upright Werewolf form again. Lithe, but strong. Something about his fur, something almost mystical, enabled him to melt into the shadows as if he belonged there.
“There’s no sense in getting frustrated about her.”
Axel raised an eyebrow. “I don’t—”
“Please.” Riley cocked his head to the side. “You love her. I know you do. It pains you to see her embracing Calum.”
He was right. Axel clenched his teeth again.
“Stop. It.”
“Sorry.” Axel relaxed his jaw again. “So you can read minds now, too?”
Riley huffed. “Hardly. We Wolves are watchers. Observers. It’s part of why we hide in the shadows—so we can stalk our prey. Get to know its tendencies, habits—”
&n
bsp; “Prey?”
“Not you.” Riley smirked. “Not anymore, anyway.”
Axel eyed him.
“We watch everything, not just prey. But that’s how it begins for us. We’re strategic, calculating creatures. We don’t just jump in without assessing.” Riley nodded toward Calum and Lilly, who’d finally stopped hugging and now stood shoulder to shoulder against one of the marble pillars, talking. “Those two? They love each other, but neither of them will admit it.”
That was not what Axel wanted to hear.
“Don’t glare at me. They’re not acting on it mostly because of you. They both know it would hurt you too deeply if they did.” Riley folded his thick arms. “There’s also the external pressure of Lilly’s family and friends, and Calum’s mission to raise Lumen’s army. Neither of them believe they have the capacity to support a relationship amidst all of that.”
“I wasn’t asking about them.”
Riley cocked his eyebrow up. “You’re livid about it. I’ve seen the way you look at them, obviously, but you carry it into everything you do. You vent your discontent when you fight, when you speak. I’ve even seen it in the way you stand and walk. Your footfalls stop just short of stomping.”
Axel swallowed. Riley had seen all of that? Perhaps Axel should’ve been nicer to him earlier on. An ally this observant could have helped him win Lilly over. Maybe he still could.
“Would you consider—”
“No chance. I’m not taking sides in this.”
“You don’t even know what—” Axel stopped himself. Yes, Riley did know what he was going to ask. Axel’s body language or tone of voice must have given it away. He sighed and looked back at Calum and Lilly. “Never mind. You said you weren’t my friend. Why are you telling me this?”
“I’m not your friend.” Riley tilted his head. “I’m telling you because I know it bothers you. And so you’ll stop grinding your teeth around me.”
Axel glared at him. “So you get a thrill out of seeing me suffer?”
“Thrill? Hardly. You’re not interesting enough to thrill me.” Riley grinned. “Satisfaction, though? That I do get.”
“Whatever.”
Riley’s left ear twitched and he growled. “You’re grinding your teeth again.”
Axel turned away. “Deal with it.”
Just when Lilly had finally started to relax, General Balena descended from the air and landed before her and Calum.
“Premieress,” he said, “the soldiers are dispersed with the exception of ten of the remaining Royal Guard. If you are willing, I would have a word with you.”
Lilly nodded. “Of course, General.”
“Alone, if you don’t mind.” General Balena’s stern gaze shifted from her to Calum.
“It’s alright. He can stay.” Lilly didn’t want Calum to go. As she’d expected, he understood her pain, and he’d comforted her, commiserated with her.
General Balena’s hard expression didn’t change as he exhaled a steady breath through his nose—except his left eye narrowed almost imperceptibly as he stared at Calum.
“It’s fine, Lilly.” Calum gave her hand a squeeze. “We can catch up again later. I know you’ve got a lot to do right now.”
Lilly wanted to say something but hesitated, and Calum nodded to General Balena and started walking toward Magnus.
“Premieress?” General Balena asked.
She returned her attention to him. “Yes, General?”
“Please, come with me. There are too many hungry ears in this room.” He cast a furtive glance at Condor, who stood before the ten members of the Royal Guard, giving them instructions. He still wore the same tattered garb he’d worn since they rescued him from Oren’s fortress at the Blood Chasm.
So that’s what General Balena wanted to talk about.
Lilly nodded. “Lead the way.”
General Balena escorted her outside and to the top of what remained of the Sky Fortress, now a flat metal box tainted by several mounds of charred blue rubble. A few of the spires’ golden tips lay amid the heaps, now pitiful reminders of the fortress’s former glory and splendor. A few others were melted and had cooled into solid pools of gold.
It all reminded Lilly of her father. She bit her lip to fend off more tears.
When they landed among the wreckage, General Balena took Lilly’s hands in his own and stared into her eyes. “Premieress—Lilly. Why is Condor here?”
“Axel found him and set him free from captivity at the Blood Chasm. Had he not done so, we all would have died. Condor evened the odds, then he tipped them in our favor just enough to overcome Oren and his Saurians.”
General Balena shook his head. “He cannot be trusted.”
“He has proven trustworthy thus far, and he has saved my life multiple times.”
“And once at the cost of Falcroné’s life.”
“No.” Lilly shook her head. “I was there, Uncle. Falcroné gave his life to save me, but had Condor not been there to pull me from the Jyrak’s hand while Falcroné kept it from crushing me, you would have lost both your son and your niece.”
“Why do you defend him?” General Balena’s sharp tone startled Lilly so much that she recoiled a step. “Why?”
“I—I believe he wants what is best for our realm, as do I.”
“He tried to assassinate your father, Lilly! Had Falcroné and I not intervened, he would have succeeded.”
Lilly hesitated. “Uncle, I—”
“You have no idea what Condor is capable of.” General Balena gripped her shoulders in his gigantic hands. “He is faster than any Wisp I’ve ever known, and he is as skilled a fighter as I. Even your father, whose blade could have felled nearly any opponent in all of Kanarah, was overcome during Condor’s attack.”
“And I trust him,” Lilly finally asserted. “He has protected me with his life since we freed him from Oren’s fortress. He is indebted to me by the Law of Debt—his life for mine. There is no one else with whom I would rather entrust my life.”
Lilly swallowed the lump in her throat. What about Calum? Magnus? General Balena himself? Or even Axel? Her three friends had protected her since the day they rescued her from Roderick, and General Balena had been a part of her life from the very beginning, yet now she sought to assign the task of her protection solely to Condor?
General Balena released his grip on her. “Your father said the very same thing to me when we promoted him upon Sevilon’s retirement. I had wanted Falcroné to serve as the new Captain of the Royal Guard, not because he was my son, but because he was better suited to the job. Falcroné was a gifted fighter as well, but he could never seriously compete with Condor.
“I wanted Condor with me, on the battlefield. Selfishly, I knew he would keep me alive in any circumstance. I was confident that he and I could get out of any scrape together, as long as we had our swords. He was my protégé, even more so than Falcroné.”
Lilly listened intently. She’d never heard any of this, either from her father or Falcroné before, and certainly not from General Balena, who was notoriously a man of few words.
General Balena exhaled a long breath. “Condor belonged on the battlefield. He would have made general within five years had your father not granted him the Royal Guard. I protested the appointment with vehemence, but your father was the Premier. It was his choice.”
He stared into the clear blue skies around them, his hazel eyes searching. “Condor was smarter than Falcroné. More perceptive. Too perceptive. My real concern was that he would learn too much, being so close to the seat of power. That he would use that knowledge against the realm. I should have voiced that concern to your father, but I didn’t.”
Lilly touched his shoulder, and he turned. “Uncle, why are you telling me all of this?”
He looked at her with tears forming in his eyes. “You are the only family I have left. My beloved wife is gone. Your parents are dead. And now my only son is dead. Condor was like a son to me as well. When he rebelled, his assas
sination attempt failed, but he still managed to kill a part of me. If something happens to you—”
“It won’t, Uncle. It won’t.” She cupped his bearded jaw with her hand.
“Evangeline said the same thing when she got sick.”
A pit opened in Lilly’s stomach. “Uncle, please. I’ve had more than my fair share of grief for today.”
“I’m sorry, but my brother-in-law lies in a pool of his own blood at the base of his throne, because I—” General Balena stopped and clenched his eyes shut.
“You what?” Lilly asked.
He opened his eyes and stared at her. For the first time in her life, Lilly witnessed the resolve in General Balena’s gaze falter.
“I let him die.”
Chapter Nine
Lilly’s mouth hung open. “What do you mean?”
General Balena’s jaw tightened. “When the Saurians attacked, we held them off for quite awhile. Our races generally match up neutrally when it comes to fighting—that is, our advantages of flight and speed do not necessarily outweigh their advantages of resilient scales and strength.”
Lilly nodded. “I remember you teaching me about that. Go on.”
“Through aerial acrobatics and quick, precise attacks, we had begun to repel the Saurian forces. Under my command, the army recaptured and protected the lift so they couldn’t bring any more soldiers up to the fortress, all while your father remained in the fortress under guard. Everything was going well, but then we heard a distant boom.”
Lilly’s heart fluttered in her chest. “Kahn.”
General Balena nodded. “That boom was the first of many. With each beat of his wings, another thunderclap jarred our crystal walls.”
Lilly shuddered at the thought.
“In the handful of times Praetorius visited our realm, I never heard any sort of sound from his wings, except for one time,” General Balena continued. “He’d flown miles away by that point and appeared to my younger keener eyes as little more than a large speck on the northern horizon. When he flapped his wings to gain more elevation, the boom took almost a full minute to reverberate around us, but it rattled my teeth just the same.