Vivatera (Vivatera Series Book 1)

by Candace J Thomas

  The dance lasted but a moment before she bent low and kissed Katia on her forehead. The Ice Queen shattered at the touch and fell into a million crystals, showering both Katia and Naomi with tiny ice shards. Silence hovered for a few seconds before the boys began clapping with excitement.

  Landon rushed over. “Amazing. How . . . It’s so different.” Seemingly at a loss, he hugged Katia, then immediately let go, embarrassed. “Uh, good job,” he said, and quickly walked away.

  Micah rushed right behind. “Katia! The earth smiles in delight of the life you have made.”

  Naomi blinked a few times before brushing the ice from her body. She was surprised. First, at what she had witnessed and second, that she had been right about the magic. Katia needed to understand it on an emotional level.

  Katia smiled wickedly. “You were right, you know,” she called to Landon.

  Landon grimaced. “What are you talking about?”

  She laughed. “I do freeze with my feelings.”

  

  Taren watched two hooded figures creep out of the barracks after the others fell asleep. A wide grin crossed his face; he expected this. The little group of misfits had acted differently today—suspicious and secretive—ever since the incredible magic Katia displayed. Taren, who’d become very familiar with reading the patterns of her magic, watched in surprise.

  He’d never seen anything like it before in the patterns; it couldn’t be her magic. Naomi must have helped her. A little touch from her hand released magic Katia didn’t even know she possessed. The magic read as happy—not like anything he’d felt through Katia before.

  And yet, Taren felt anger in Naomi’s magic, and for it to help Katia like this didn’t make sense. His taste for Naomi’s magic grew with every encounter.

  When it was safe, Taren dropped from the tree and crept down the paths to find the group’s secret meeting. The wind would be the perfect cover if anyone heard him sneaking in the dark—but he wouldn’t get caught. He was too smart.

  The girls’ tent remained silent, aside from the sound of leaves swirling on the ground and the wind tapping quietly on the fabric. It whispered of a presence nearby. He ducked behind branches to watch. Ahead, the door flap lifted, Katia’s hair reflecting a deep purple in the dull, gray light as she poked her head into the darkness. She spoke, but the distance was too great for Taren to hear what she said. He must get closer. The figures entered the tent, the flap secured tightly behind them. Small flickers of candlelight illuminated the inside.

  Quickly, he slipped around the other side. Finding a small, weak spot in the canvass, he slit it with his knife enough to see a part of the group in their conversation.

  “Nice place you got,” Landon exclaimed. “This is downright lovely.”

  “I have brought some of my trinkets that might be of interest,” Micah’s squeak resonated.

  “Is that what took you so long?” Katia sounded irritated.

  “Some of the others took a while to wind down,” Landon explained before Micah had a chance to talk. “Today was very exciting for them. But we can get to that later. I want to know more about this dream, Naomi. Something must have happened—and it’s something big, isn’t it?”

  “I didn’t understand the consequence until I went to Lytte for advice. He has so much knowledge about the world.”

  “Did he advise you to leave?”

  “No, that was my decision. He doesn’t know.”

  Taren stiffened. He suspected they might be discussing escaping. Naomi could get him out.

  “Getting out of this place isn’t like picking a lock. Did your dream explain how to do it?”

  “Well . . . no.”

  “Then what did your dream show you?”

  Katia interrupted. “What’s wrong with you? It’s not like Naomi’s lying to us.”

  “Well, maybe she is.”

  Taren could make out Naomi’s expression in the flame. She looked affronted.

  Landon continued. “How do we know? We don’t see what she sees, and I think she’s holding something back. I can sense it.”

  “Oh, you’re jealous that you didn’t get anywhere with your magic today,” Katia retorted. “Your magic is so hard to combine with. Nothing you did today produced any success. Your illusions have no substance.”

  Taren smiled as the argument heated up.

  “It doesn’t have anything to do with that!”

  “He’s right.” Naomi’s declaration made everyone quiet.

  “I am?”

  “He is?”

  “Yes,” Naomi answered, looking fed up with the debate. “Let me explain. The dream has something to do with a man named Reynolds.”

  Taren’s temper heated at the mention of his name.

  Naomi told her companions her dream of a place called the Echoes, a strange people called Arenmas, and Harrow the underlord of Mount Ibis. She talked about the changing of the winds and how that was somehow connected to her—concepts that stretched what Taren understood about the capabilities of his own magic.

  After the telling, Landon sank down next to Naomi, his face expressionless. “That’s not what I expected at all.”

  “Were you expecting something more sensational?” Katia quipped.

  “Maybe.”

  “The Echoes are the place of my heritage and the Arenmas, my people,” Micah spoke up. “They hold a sacred place in the earth. Only something very powerful would be able to enter and direct you into the mountain. Did Lytte suggest the stones?”

  “Yes, but I don’t know anything about them.”

  “Wait! What stones?” Landon interrupted. “That wasn’t in the dream.”

  “The winds!” Micah continued. “The Atmos stone can control storms. Someone must have found it.”

  “But Naomi doesn’t have a stone, do you?” Katia asked.

  “No.”

  “But this Harrow thinks one might be in the camp.”

  “Maybe.” Naomi shook her head. “I don’t know. I wish I understood the importance of the stones and what they have to do with me, but I don’t. Trust me. To find the answers, I have to go to the Echoes.”

  “But it’s a trap.”

  “If it’s a trap, I’ll need help from all of you.”

  “It’s because of the man who rescued you, isn’t it?” Katia realized aloud. “He’s in the cave. That’s who we need to save, right?”

  Anxiety washed over Naomi’s face like a fresh wound. “His name is Reynolds, and he rescued me in Sharlot and risked his life to save mine several times. I’m the only one that knows he’s in danger, and I feel helpless here. I must do something.”

  Taren sat back, considering what he just heard. Just the mention of Reynolds clouded his thinking. He took a few breaths to level his temper before he could look back.

  “That’s all I needed to know,” Landon broke the silence. “I’m in.”

  Katia smiled. “That wasn’t too hard.”

  “So, we are agreed?” Micah pulled out items from his pocket. “Let me show you my treasures. I have a map of the outside.”

  “Where’d you get that?” Landon asked in surprise.

  “I nicked it from someone while they were sleeping.”

  “Nicely done.”

  “Mount Ibis is there. If we’re prepared, it might take us seven days; unprepared will be longer. And this,” Micah continued, holding out his palm, “is my compass stone. It belongs in the Echoes and will always point to its home.”

  Naomi leaned over to look more closely. “How does it work?”

  “Cup it in your hands and rub it gently with your thumbs.”

  Naomi did as he directed. The peculiar stone circled around until it pointed in a direction. “Fantastic,” Naomi breathed.

  “So, what about this last one?” Katia asked.

  Micah hopped up with excitement. “Ah. This is my sacred treasure. The Percipus Amulet. Let me show you how it works.”

  Taren watched the little ground dweller plac
e the amulet over his head and disappear.

  “Let me try,” Landon exclaimed.

  Taren envied the magic he didn’t have, craving the object so he could better understand it.

  Micah reappeared as the shield of his magic lifted from around his neck. “I have never shown this to anyone before. My uncle created a few different medallions in his life. Some Lytte carries in his keeping. Of this stone, he made a brother; the other he gave away long ago. But there are flaws. Those who have seen the object or know of its power can see through it. Also, it does not work for everyone, so it can be very risky to use.”

  “Okay.” Landon wrung his hands with anticipation. “We’ll take a few days to start collecting provisions. I don’t want anyone else to start suspecting anything, so we’ll have to be careful. Naomi, can you find out how to get out of the camp?”

  “I think so.”

  Taren had heard enough. Soon the two boys would be heading back to the barracks, and he needed to make a plan of his own.

  Chapter Twelve

  Interloper

  Zander worked diligently the next day. From the corner of his eye, the sight of Audra made him weary. He avoided contact, knowing she would ask about last night. He was sworn to secrecy and would keep it safe, for Bryant, and for Silexa.

  Promises, promises.

  Zander visited Silexa every evening when he could. The conversations were light, and he kept his promise to not talk. Silexa obeyed Bryant’s wish to a certain extent, but was also slightly, sweetly rebellious, asking gentle questions about his upbringing. He didn’t respond verbally but nodded when she got things right. She knew he’d lived on a farm and that he loved tending to the piglets when they were born, as well as his love for picking wild strawberries.

  Zander contemplated his situation one night while lying in his room. A different secret ate at him, not Bryant’s or Silexa’s, but his own: the secret about Naomi. She bore the same scar on her neck as Silexa. He knew there must be a connection, though he didn’t know what. Someday, the question would creep to the surface, and he would deal with the consequences when it did.

  In the kitchen, he and everyone else were kept busy, working furiously to prepare for an upcoming feast, still a week away. Zander didn’t know much about it, but he honored his responsibility and did his best to perform his duties.

  Zander had found a moment to have a small lunch when Audra caught up to him—alone with his thoughts in the corner pantry, quietly eating his soup.

  She slid down next to him and smiled.

  “I’ve been trying to talk to you all day,” she started, her whisper hissing next to his ear. “But it’s been so busy.”

  “Yes,” he agreed.

  “Tell me,” she started with a flirtatious tone, “what has the prince got you doing every night?”

  “What?”

  “I’ll have to start looking at you differently if you’re friends with the prince.”

  “Not exactly f-friends.”

  Audra shifted her legs to a more comfortable position. “Prince Bryant has a lot of enemies, but he usually doesn’t seek them out at the end of the day.”

  Zander thought carefully before he answered. “He gave me a sp-special a-assign-ment.”

  Audra’s face lit up. “Ander, this is so big. You have no idea. What kind of assignment?”

  “Uh . . .” He wasn’t sure what to say and he had no experience thinking quickly. “Secret.”

  Audra’s smile fell a little. “But surely you can share it with me. I won’t tell anyone. You can trust me.”

  “I . . . ” he started, then stopped. Audra looked at him pleadingly. “Sorry.”

  Audra didn’t like that answer.

  Zander wasn’t sure if he was seeing things right, but he thought he saw her eyes flash black, then back to green.

  “Ander,” she said, smiling as if nothing had happened, “I want you to be careful about trusting the prince. Whatever he has asked of you could be dangerous. It could cost you. I’m serious when I say he has many enemies. A few of them may be here for the feast. You have to be careful. I don’t want you to be used in some devious plot he’s woven.”

  Zander sat very still, thinking.

  “If you tell me, at least one other person will know if anything happens to you.”

  That explanation made sense to him. It was a backup plan; in case anything happened, she would know. “Okay,” he said, looking around to ensure their seclusion. “He has asked f-for my help pr . . . protecting something.”

  Audra’s face contorted into an intense expression. She leaned in very close to him. “Do you have it? Can I see it?”

  “What?”

  “Is it with you?”

  “No.”

  Her expression changed. “What is it?”

  “Well,” he started, “it’s . . . S . . . ” he couldn’t spit it out. He tried again but struggled.

  “Yeah, you there!” Mildred hailed him from the hall. “Master Curtis wants ya,” she said in her gravely tone. “He’s to have ya go tur your room and dress. He’ll pick ya up there.”

  Zander set off, glancing back at Audra, who did not look pleased.

  When he arrived in his room, he found a uniform lying on his bed. He looked through the clothing. Pieces upon pieces layered each other; he wasn’t sure how the whole look fit together. Quickly throwing off his clothes, he slipped the uniform over his undergarment. He fumbled a little with the bulky buttons, but it looked quite put together. His favorite part was the cloak made from a blue velvet material, much like the prince’s. The soft, fine fabric was nicer than anything Zander had ever owned. He planned to sleep in it every night from now on.

  “Well, well, nice suit,” Curtis said, coming into the room. His long body filled the room to the ceiling, smothering Zander’s light mood.

  The way Curtis looked at him made Zander’s insides twist. There was no trusting the tall obelisk. But he was Bryant’s Primitus, and he would trust Bryant to the ends of the earth for saving his life and treating him so well.

  Curtis’ stone-cold eyes scanned the room before coming back to Zander’s. “Nice view you have,” he said snidely. “It was smart of Bryant to keep you as far from the city as possible. We wouldn’t want our little bird to fly.”

  Zander’s cheeks felt hot as embarrassment rose inside him. He turned, but Curtis left without him down the corridor, so Zander headed in the direction which made the most sense. All he needed to do was to find the grand hallway. If he found that, surely he could make it back to Silexa’s private room.

  On his way, he glanced toward Audra’s room. All was quiet, which secretly made him happier. He had been afraid Audra would see him or want to follow, but he was safe for the moment.

  ~*~

  Zander eventually made it to the grand hall with the winding staircase and the door of many locks. The cogs were heavy and aged, and he had trouble unfastening and fastening them again. But with persistence, the door hinge squeaked and opened.

  Matlock wasn’t standing at the entrance of the secret room; the missing guard caused a flutter in Zander’s beating heart. Something must be wrong.

  But then the door opened from the other side, and the pock-faced Matlock came out, accompanying the beautiful Silexa.

  “Oh, Zander,” she exclaimed with joy. “Look at you, so sharp in your uniform.”

  Zander lost all thought at the mere sight of her. The flowing gown was flecked with gray and blue, dazzling to the eye. Her hair was shaped back into a sweet curl, with white flowers setting it delicately in place. As she walked forward, the air moved out of her way, leaving ribbons of magic in her wake. A lovely shawl made from silk flowed freely about her shoulders.

  “I guess you approve.” She grabbed the edge of her dress and curtsied. “Bryant picked it out for me.”

  Zander smiled, though his cheeks felt hot from blushing.

  Silexa turned her attention to the strange guard. “Matlock, thank you.”

  “I
will be back, my lady,” he said in his cracked, haggard voice. Setting his eyes on the boy, he winked before exiting, leaving the two together just outside her bedchamber.

  Silexa flung her arms around Zander. The warmth of the embrace helped ease the tension he felt, loosening his thoughts and feelings. He embraced her back.

  She pulled away to look at him, “How do you like your suit? I picked out the colors myself. I love any shade of blue, and I thought it would go so well with your hair.”

  Zander had forgotten about his fiery red head, and felt embarrassed.

  Silexa squeezed him again with a little giggle. “I love your hair. But if you ever need to hide it, the cloak has a hood.” She smiled. “I’m glad we have a chance to talk.”

  Zander’s heart beat very fast. He, too, wanted to talk to her, but fear stopped his speech.

  Silexa took his hand and sat down with him on the steps before the threshold of the doorway, looking into the passage. She seemed suddenly more serious, her voice dropping to a faint whisper. “I’m terribly afraid for you. We still have a few days and I thought I should warn you about what might happen.” She stopped and looked into his eyes. “Do you understand, or am I just rambling?”

  Zander smiled even though he didn’t.

  Silexa reached into a cloth bag and brought out two items, a small dagger and a lustrous blue stone. “I have some things to help protect you. This,”—she handed him the dagger—“is for protection, in case you need it.” She helped him place it by his hip, under his cloak, before turning to the other item. “This other one is a little different, and I will need your help with it.”

  Zander nodded, but didn’t like the direction she was headed.

  “This stone is very special. My father gave it to me. I am the sole guardian of its power. This stone is why I am in so much trouble and why we are in danger.” Her voice fell to the tiniest whisper. “I need you to keep it safe for me. I fear people will kill me if they find it.”

  Zander choked at the words. He remembered Bryant’s warning: the separation from the stone would kill her. He hadn’t expected this kind of responsibility. Of anyone in the entire world, he was probably the worst choice.