Her eyes fell upon a massive chest with a very heavy looking lock. Curious she set her picks into the opening and began to work the pins inside. Despite the formidable appearance of the lock, it sprang open with ease. Amri opened the lid to reveal more coins than she thought she would ever see in her entire life. She dipped her hand into the pile and listened to the clank of metal on metal as the coins rained back into the chest. The glittering gold was all too alluring but Amri moved on, certain she wouldn’t find what she was looking for inside.
“Oh, wait these papers look like they are a list of the people working for the Ringmaster.” Miri said excitedly. “How do you spell Raigh’s name?”
Amri gave her an incredulous look. “How should I know?”
“Right.” Miri blushed embarrassed and continued to leaf through the papers.
Amri moved her search to the wardrobe but was disappointed to find only more of the man’s pompous attire, clean, pressed and ready to be worn. She felt around the inside for secret compartments but found none. She continued to work her way through the other cubbies and cabinets that lined the walls of the wagon. Curiously she found, within another locked cabinet, a collection of bottles filled with strange chemicals and other illicit materials. She thought for a moment that Browen’s father was right, the carnival was full of criminals. She continued her search and found a suspicious section of wood carved into the headboard of the Ringmaster’s bed. Excitedly she began to feel the space searching for a way to pop open the hidden alcove.
“I don’t think these will help.” Miri sighed. “They look like descriptions of the talents the people here have and how much they are paid.”
“Got it!” Amri said, only half listening to Miri as the door swung open.
Inside was an odd collection of mementos. A lock of smooth red hair tied elegantly with a green ribbon, a medal made of gold with a bright red ribbon that dangled from it, a puzzle box made of fine cherry wood, a comb, a ring with a huge blue stone, and a scrap of yellowed paper with a single word written on it.
“Miri what does this say?” Amri asked, taking the note and handing it to her.
Miri’s face wrinkled in concentration as she tried to read the word, then her eyes went wide. “Raighlae! I think this was left by Raigh’s mother.”
The door to the wagon opened and both girls gasped as the Ringmaster starred wide eyed at them. “What have we here?” He snarled.
Amri’s eyes flicked to the single exit but the Ringmaster’s girth was enough to block any sort of escape. He then reached out and grabbed both of their wrists with surprising strength and proceeded to drag them from his wagon. Outside were a pair of heavy-set stagehands who watched curiously.
“Gorrick, Donnalin, hold onto these thieves for me will you.” The Ringmaster instructed as he passed Amri and Miri to the pair.
Amri tried to squirm away but was surprised by the vice-like grip that Donnalin had on her arms. Miri cried out as she also attempted to break free of her captor but to no avail. The Ringmaster snickered at the pair then disappeared back inside of the wagon. He came out again shortly after, now holding the sharp little dagger from his desk.
“I was wondering what sort of trouble Ralis’s friends were going to get into.” The Ringmaster clicked his tongue as if disappointed. “You might not know this, but we don’t ascribe to the regular laws here. You could say that we’re above them and we do as we wish. Knowing that, can you guess what we do to thieves?”
Amri’s eyes moved to the dagger in the Ringmaster’s hands and he smiled gleefully.
“You cannot do this!” Miri cried out as she eyed the wicked dagger.
Amri looked around the campground for something to help her get away. A thin woman with long blond braids had entered the camp but turned and hurried back towards the festivities as she saw the scene. There was no sign of the others and no way that Amri could wiggle her way free.
“I can do whatever I want.” The Ringmaster sneered at Miri, seemingly enjoying her cries. “I am the Ringmaster of this Carnival of Dreams.”
“If you kill us, Ralis will never join you.” Amri hissed at him, hitting him the only way she could think of. “He’s all you really care about right, isn’t he?”
“Who said anything about killing you.” The Ringmaster chuckled. “So melodramatic. But you are right, Ralis is a treasure that I cannot risk losing.”
“Then let us go!” Miri cried as she continued to twist in Gorrick’s grasp.
“Now, what sort of lesson would that be?” He paced, enjoying every moment of their torment. “If I let you two go unscathed then everyone will think that they can sneak into my wagon and go through my things without punishment. That will not do. I need to make a clear sign that thieves are not tolerated in my carnival. One that is permanent and very visible.”
He paused and walked up to Amri knife first. With a wicked sneer he brought the dagger to her cheek and playfully traced her jawline without breaking the skin. Amri spat into the man’s face and he recoiled with a curse.
“You’ll pay for that too.” He glared at her as he wiped the spit from his chin. “Maybe I’ll turn you over to the Queen. I can promise that she won’t be as merciful as me.”
Amri froze at the insinuation and the Ringmaster chuckled, gleeful to have the upper hand again.
“Raighlae told me about your little quest to dethrone her, I wonder what sort of reward I would receive for bringing such traitors to her doorstep.”
“But… We…” Miri stammered in dread, then her head bowed in realization. “Oh Ralis… why?”
“The Queen is after Ralis too, if you turn us in, she’ll take him away from you too!” Amri snapped, desperate to regain some ground.
“The Queen is after you? That’s news to me.” The Ringmaster played with his dagger as he considered Amri’s words.
“What is going on here?” Ezra’s voice commanded from across the campground.
Amri turned and sighed in relief to see Ezra, Browen, Ralis and Raigh approaching the scene. The shadows around Ezra seemed to coil around her as she fumed, and the air shimmered as if from a great heat.
The Ringmaster turned and clicked his tongue as he shook his head. “I am sorry to say that despite all of my generosity and kindness your friends have decided to try and steal from me. I’m afraid that they must be punished for this crime.” He then turned back to Amri and Miri with a wicked glint in his eye. “I have decided that I shall take a hand from them. It is a crude but effective deterrent.”
“I don’t think so.” Ezra’s voice sounded dangerous and Amri could feel the heat emanating from her despite the distance.
“Raighlae, deal with them.” The Ringmaster commanded.
Raigh winced for a half second before she reached out and cracked her fist hard into the back of both Ezra and Browen’s heads. The two slumped to the ground unconscious from the precise impact.
“Raigh you don’t have to do what he says.” Ralis pleaded.
“Raighlae, restrain him.” The Ringmaster commanded.
She nodded and grabbed Ralis firmly by the wrist. The Ringmaster grabbed Amri’s right arm and pulled her hand towards him. With his dominant hand he prepared to bring the dagger down on her wrist.
“No!” Amri cried as she fought against the hands that held her.
The Ringmaster brought the dagger up and another voice stayed his hand.
“Wait!” Ralis pulled his hand free from Raigh and stepped forward. “I’ll do whatever you want please! Just don’t hurt my friends.”
The Ringmaster smiled as if he had been waiting for that moment and lowered the dagger. “You will work for free and do as I ask when I ask it, no complaints.”
“Ralis do not agree to this!” Miri cried out in utter terror.
“Yes, anything.” Ralis pleaded ignoring her cries.
“You will bel
ong to me and only be allowed to leave should I give you permission to leave.” The Ringmaster continued, releasing Amri’s hand and turning to face Ralis.
Her hand free Amri turned and punched Donnalin between the eyes. A gusher of blood erupted from his broken nose, but he continued to hold her firmly in his grasp. She tried to punch him again, but he caught her hand and pulled her tight against him. She couldn’t move as his arms constricted around her and one of his hands was clasped tightly over her mouth preventing her from speaking as she cursed.
The Ringmaster laughed at the attempt and looked back to Ralis. “No one else needs to get hurt Ralis, all you need to do is agree to my terms.”
“Ralis don’t!” Raigh called to him.
“Raighlae shut your mouth.” The Ringmaster hissed and she complied. “Do we have a deal?”
“You cannot do this!” Miri continued to cry. Her face was soaked with tears and the fight seemed to have drained from her body as she dangled limply in Gorrick’s grasp.
“Yes, we have a deal.” Ralis answered without hesitation while his gaze continually flicked between Amri and Miri still restrained and Ezra and Browen unconscious on the ground.
“Shake on it.” The Ringmaster walked up to Ralis and held out his hand to him.
Ralis looked between his friends then took the Ringmaster’s hand and shook it.
“The deal is done. Gorrick, Donnalin, you can let them go now.”
Miri fell to her knees the second she was released and buried her face into her hands as she cried. Amri wrenched her arms free and glared daggers at the Ringmaster as he spoke victoriously.
“Donnalin and Raighlae I want you to keep an eye on our latest recruit. Make sure that he sticks to our agreement. Now go Ralis, aren’t you supposed to be performing right now?”
Ralis bowed his head and allowed Donnalin and Raigh to escort him back into the festivities. The Ringmaster chuckled darkly before addressing Amri and Miri.
“I have no more need for talentless Humans, or meddlesome Elves. I suggest that you leave before you get yourselves into more trouble.”
Chapter Fourteen
Ezra
Someone shook Ezra awake and the first thing she noticed was the painful ache in the back of her skull. Then she remembered what had caused it. She sat up with a frown and saw Amri kneeling beside her.
“Are you alright?” Amri asked.
Ezra nodded even as the flame flared angrily inside her. Amri moved to check on Browen and he woke quickly at her touch.
“Did they hurt you?” Browen asked as he inspected Amri with a worried knot on his brow.
“Don’t worry about me.” Amri shook her head in frustration. “How are you doing?”
Browen rubbed the back of his head. “I’ve been better. What happened?”
Miri looked up between sobs. “Ralis made a deal with the Ringmaster… to protect us.”
“He agreed to be essentially indentured to the Ringmaster. He’s not allowed to leave, and he has to play for free.” Amri snapped as she glared at the retreating form of the Ringmaster
Ezra followed Amri’s stare with a fury of her own. She could feel the flame inside her burning at the edges of her mind, desperate to torch the whole wretched carnival into ash. It would be easy; they wouldn’t be able to stop her. She gritted her teeth in frustration, as she tried to calm her mind. Ralis was in there, and if she let loose, she couldn’t guarantee that she wouldn’t hurt him along with everyone else.
“Ezra?” Browen’s voice invaded her thoughts. “You’re in control remember, not the flame.”
She regretted not unleashing the flame’s full fury the previous night, now it was all too tempting to let it rage in the wake of Ralis’s deal.
“Ezra?” Amri had managed control over her own anger and reached out, but the heat on Ezra’s skin burned her fingers.
The look of fear on her friend’s faces was nearly enough to push the flame away. Through gritted teeth she hissed. “I’m fine.”
She was anything but fine. She brought her hands to her head as she struggled against the temptation of the flame. Her friends watched, not only concerned for her wellbeing, but for their own safety having already witnessed the full destructive force of the flame. She looked down at her hands and noticed that they were wreathed in green flames that did not burn her but singed the grass and dirt beneath them.
She took a shuddering breath and thought of Arze. Her twin, her other half. She focused on the quiet moments they spent together, talking in the tower with stolen treats and drinks from the kitchens. Or the moments that they shared drawing together and telling each other silly little stories. Or when they were younger and decided to explore every inch of the castle, searching for secrets. It had taken years to traverse every hall, investigate every room and climb every staircase, but they had done it and had even found a few secrets along the way.
The flame calmed at the reminder of happier times and the green flames flickered back into her skin. She looked up and breathed heavily, as if she had just run for her life.
“I’m fine.” She repeated as she stood and brushed off the dirt from her clothes.
“You can barely control it.” Miri timidly realized.
Ezra glared at the obvious statement and replied with the flicker of fire in her tone. “The flame doesn’t control me.” She took a breath to calm herself, she was teetering on the edge of submitting to the flame. “We need to figure out how we’re going to help Ralis out of this mess.”
“Why did the Ringmaster have you and Miri bound like that?” Browen asked.
“We got caught.” Amri frowned and crossed her arms. “And it was for nothing, we didn’t learn anything.”
“Not necessarily.” Ezra straightened her clothes as she spoke. “I was worried that the deal was going to be magically bound, like how Raigh seems bound, but I don’t think that it is. Whatever is making her follow the Ringmaster’s orders is different.”
“Like what?” Amri asked.
“I don’t know.” Ezra answered, crossing her arms deep in thought. “We need to get Ralis out of here before the Ringmaster does to him, whatever it was he did to Raigh.”
“So Ralis is not bound as she is?” Miri asked with a sniffle.
“Not yet anyway. The only reason to keep that contract would be a moral obligation, but I think saving Madaria is more important than that.” Ezra answered.
“So tonight, when everyone is asleep, we can help him escape.” Browen confirmed.
Ezra nodded; the flare of a fiery anger still burned in her green eyes.
“What do we do until then?” Miri asked. “The Ringmaster told us to leave.”
“So, we do that and sneak back here tonight, after the shows are done.” Ezra looked towards the forest. “You and Amri already did that once before, it shouldn’t be too hard.”
“But they’re going to be expecting us this time.” Amri noted.
“Then they’ll need a distraction.” Ezra gave her friends a wicked smile as she held up her tattooed arm. She and the flame would both get what they wanted.
“What if someone gets hurt?” Browen asked. “There are good people here.”
“I’ll be careful.” Ezra lowered her arm.
“Maybe we shouldn’t be planning where we can be overheard?” Amri indicated a group of carnival workers walking from the festivities to take a break by the fire.
“Yes, we can hide in the woods.” Miri remarked as she brushed aside her tears with her sleeve and led them towards the tree line.
They watched while hidden in the shadows of the trees until Ralis, Raigh and their bodyguards, Donnalin and Gorrick, returned from the tents. The Ringmaster waited for them and spoke to the four once they returned to the campground. It was too far away for Ezra to hear what was being said, but th
e downtrodden expression on Ralis’s face was more than enough. The flame nearly erupted from her in a wild fury as she watched the Ringmaster lock Ralis into the previously unoccupied animal cage. Miri whimpered at the sight, and Ezra wondered if it was the same cage from her vision.
Then the Ringmaster departed with Donnalin, leaving Raigh and Gorrick to watch the cage for the time being. For once, Ralis did not seem interested in talking to her and instead curled into a ball in the corner of the cage.
“Poor Ralis.” Browen sighed at the sight.
“What’s the plan?” Amri asked.
Ezra looked towards the quiet looking tents and let a spark of flame dance eagerly along her fingertips. “I make a distraction. Hopefully it is enough that only one person is left guarding Ralis. Between the three of you it should be easy to take them out, then Amri unlocks the door.”
“Raigh was surprisingly strong, we’ll need to be careful if she’s the one who stays behind.” Browen said with quiet embarrassment.
“Another gift from her Na’tyr parent.” Ezra mused.
“She can also wield fire.” Miri reminded them.
“I’m not afraid of fire.” Ezra answered coldly. “I’ll come back to help once the distraction has been set.”
“All of this started because we wanted to rescue a caged half Na’tyr. I guess that’s how it will end.” Amri nodded with a determined expression.
“Agreed.” Ezra stood and moved along the tree line towards the quiet carnival.
“Good luck.” Amri whispered to her as she disappeared from the others.
The sight of the empty tents and unlit lanterns was almost spooky in the moonlight. For a moment Ezra thought that her task was going to be too easy, then she saw a pair of burly stagehands moving between the pop-up structures. Their eyes were searching but Ezra was quick to slip behind a barrel until they passed. She decided not to worry about how many more could be wandering through the site and removed the glove from her left hand. As far as she was concerned, they were all implicit in Ralis’s imprisonment and stood idle for years while Raigh was made subservient against her will. That was something that made Ezra pause. She felt like she should know the answer to the puzzle. Like she had all the pieces, and yet she could not fathom how the Ringmaster kept Raigh under his thumb so completely. Yet she had no time to ponder the facts. That mystery would have to be solved another day.
Sunken Wind Page 14