Crystal Caged (Air Awakens: Vortex Chronicles Book 5)

by Elise Kova

  “You have no idea what I’ve done,” Vhalla continued.

  Vi raised her hands as if to show she was unarmed in both weapon and word. This was not the mother she knew. This was a war-weary and fragile young woman, pushed past the point of breaking.

  “Sorry.”

  “No, I’m sorry.” Vhalla shook her head. “I should go.”

  “Where are you going?” Vi asked.

  “I… I’m not sure.” She sniffled and wiped her nose with the back of her hand. “I was thinking of the Crossroads. Seems like a good place to disappear.”

  Go west by night. Vi’s own words echoed back to her. Had Vhalla left in the night, striking out for the West when all seemed lost, when she needed comfort?

  Vi had let Yargen lead her in the Crossroads when she was speaking with Vhalla. Had Yargen foreseen this meeting? There was no other way for Vi to interpret the situation. Yargen had hand-delivered the woman before her.

  And Vi wasn’t about to let her go.

  “Then, the way I see it, we’re headed in the same direction and none of us wants to be found. Why not travel together?” Vhalla was clearly uncertain, so Vi added, “It’ll be safer for all of us to travel in a larger group.”

  “I don’t want anyone to know where I am.”

  “Who are we going to tell?” Vi motioned around her. “The army isn’t here, and a bunch of deserters certainly aren’t going back to report in.”

  Vhalla fumbled with the reins and then dismounted with a sigh. “All right. I need to walk the horse for a bit anyway so he can catch his breath. We can go together for at least a little.”

  “What made you depart so quickly?” Vi asked casually, taking a few wide steps to walk alongside Vhalla. Deneya and Taavin hung back. The young woman shot her a venomous glare. “Sorry!” Vi held up her hands. “I didn’t mean—”

  “I know.” Vhalla sighed, her hands going up to the watch around her neck.

  The pocket watch-turned-necklace was almost identical in size and shape to Vi’s. But where the cover of Vi’s watch was mirror smooth, Vhalla’s watch had a sun split in half by a wing. It was a symbol Vi didn’t recognize. But if she was forced to guess, she’d surmise Aldrik had made it for Vhalla—assuming the Aldrik of this world kept similar hobbies to her father.

  Vi might not recognize the jewelry, but she did recognize the motion. Like mother, like daughter, she thought with a somewhat bitter note.

  “I know you didn’t mean to upset me,” Vhalla continued. “I left because…” she trailed off, and just when Vi had given up on the woman speaking again, she continued, “because I found out something that made a part of me feel as though it were dying.”

  “Dying?”

  “It’s hard to explain.” Vhalla smiled weakly. “My heart exists beyond myself. My life is not wholly my own. And the parts of me that were in another’s hands were crushed in an iron grip.”

  The cryptic words told Vi two things. The first was that she had been correct in her assumption about Sehra’s engagement. The second was a little less clear, but Vi was certain Vhalla was referencing the magical Bond forged between her and Aldrik all those months ago.

  She wasn’t surprised to see the young woman dancing around the topic. Bonds were rare and precious things. Knowledge of them could be used against the sorcerers who formed them.

  “I think I understand,” Vi said delicately.

  “You do?”

  “Maybe?” Vi gave Vhalla an encouraging smile. If Vi hadn’t been there the night Aldrik returned south, if she didn’t have fate’s full picture, then she likely wouldn’t have grasped all the layers to what Vhalla was trying to say. “At the very least… I have some idea of what it feels like to have a vulnerable part of yourself existing outside your skin.”

  Vi didn’t know if it was her or Yargen who felt the sentiment more keenly. Despite herself, her eyes drifted to Taavin.

  Vhalla’s intention to walk with them “a little” melted into the rest of the day. Vi didn’t dare point out that Vhalla was now setting up camp with them.

  “Are you sure you want to stay with our motley crew?” Deneya asked.

  “Don’t scare her away,” Vi scolded with a laugh, and a quick glance at her friend to say she wasn’t entirely joking.

  “It’s funny,” Vhalla murmured, focused on her bedroll. “I thought I wanted to be alone. But it turns out, it’s nice to have some company.”

  “We’re honored to hear it. Traveling with the illustrious Windwalker—”

  “Can you…” Vhalla trailed off, straightening away and looking out into the dark forest. “Can you not do that?”

  “Do what?” Vi was honestly confused.

  “That ‘illustrious Windwalker’ bit. I’m not illustrious. I’m not… I’m not anything, right now.”

  Vi opened and closed her mouth, struggling to find words. The self-deprecating statements had been ongoing throughout day, peppered through their conversations. One side of her wanted to smack and shake the woman, shout at her that this wasn’t Vhalla Yarl at all. The Vhalla Vi had known was proud, and strong, and self-assured, but gentle to boot. She was everything a daughter aspired to be.

  This Vhalla was meek and soft-spoken, oozing out between the cracks of a thin-shelled, tough exterior. This Vhalla believed every horrible thing she said about herself and more. They were the words of a young woman trying to find her place in the world and doubting at every turn.

  For all her words frustrated Vi, they also softened a part of her heart to the point of aching.

  “You’re wrong.” Taavin was the one to speak. Vhalla was clearly surprised that the man whom had been silent for most of their journey today spoke. “I won’t even apologize for saying it plainly. You’re wrong, Vhalla Yarl.”

  “What do you—”

  “Know? What do I know?” He arched his eyebrows at her and chuckled with a small shake of his head. “When it comes to matters of importance, I know a fair bit.” Taavin picked up a stick, poking at Vi’s fire before throwing it in. “I come from a—uh—faraway town.” That was certainly one way to describe Risen. “In this town, there’s much lore surrounding fate, destiny, and the red lines of the Mother that link us all.

  “Our stories teach that everyone on this earth has a purpose and a role to play. Their choices guide them to key moments in this grand, shared story. Even—no—especially you.”

  Vhalla continued to stare at him, eyes shining in the firelight. She sat, settling herself in her bedroll. “I can’t, or won’t, argue with your stories. I’ll see you all in the morning.” Clutching her pack to her chest, she rolled over and pretended to go to sleep.

  Deneya slapped Taavin’s shoulder. “You jerk, you upset her,” she scolded with a whisper.

  “I was just trying to help!”

  Vi ignored their conversation, staring at Vhalla. Whatever she felt for the woman, Vhalla was on her own journey, just as Vi was on hers. She couldn’t lose sight of what she must do.

  Right now, her eyes settled on the strap of the bag Vhalla was holding. She was never without that pack, always keeping it close and clutching it whenever one of them drew near. Her heart began to race, and with every beat, Vi heard a resounding yes.

  The axe was in that bag. Vhalla had taken it with her. All Vi had to do now was wait for the opportunity to take it from the lone, unguarded Windwalker.

  They traveled together, all the way to the Crossroads.

  There wasn’t much time for plotting or planning on the road out of fear that Vhalla would overhear. But Vi assumed her companions were aware of the situation. She hadn’t been patient when she’d made her move to take the crown. She would be patient now and move slowly and methodically.

  “It’s good to be in civilization again,” Deneya said with a stretch. “I want to bathe for days.”

  “Me too,” Vi said, glancing at Vhalla. She’d grown quiet as they’d neared the city. “I suppose this is where we all part ways. No questions asked, just like you wa
nted.”

  “And your secret is safe with us,” Taavin chimed in. “No one will hear you’re in the Crossroads from any of us.”

  “If I even stay here,” Vhalla said quickly, a little too forced. She was definitely planning on staying here, at least for a little. “Thank you all for the company. The journey somehow seemed faster with you all.” Vhalla reached up and took her second pack from where it was strapped to the saddle. “You can have the horse.”

  “Are you sure?” Vi asked.

  She nodded. “I stole it after the last battle.” Deneya roared with laughter that cracked a grin on Vhalla’s face. “So I recommend changing the leathers from military issue, at least.”

  “We will.” Vi took the reins. “Thank you for this gift.”

  “Take care, all of you.” Vhalla waved and headed down a side alley.

  “Follow her,” Vi said with a glance at Taavin.

  “Meet back at our shop?”

  She nodded. The man stepped away and ducked behind a rubbish pile. She could see a ripple in the air when he emerged from his hiding place, now invisible. Vi only caught the faint distortion because she knew what to look for.

  “Deneya, you still have the measurements for the axe?”

  “I do.”

  “I need you to make or procure one as soon as possible for me to shift.”

  “On it.”

  Deneya departed as well and Vi went back to their shop alone. She tied the horse in the back alley, setting out water. Then, she brought their supplies to the apartment upstairs. It was evening when her friends returned.

  “She’s sleeping in an alley with one eye open,” Taavin reported.

  “We can make that sleep heavier with loft not.” Vi held out a hand for the axe Deneya was holding. The woman passed it over.

  Holding out the weapon, Vi encased it in a pulse of magic. It had been a long time since she had used the shift, and the magic felt rusty. On her third try, she finally got the weapon perfected into something she was convinced could fool Vhalla.

  “It’s unnerving watching a non-morphi do that,” Deneya murmured.

  “Don’t worry, it’s the last weapon—you won’t have to see me use the shift again.”

  “I wouldn’t say I was worried…”

  “Taavin, lead us to her.” Vi remained focused. Her fingers itched with yearning for the crystal weapon. She was close to it, terribly close. The axe was the final piece that would make everything fall into place.

  Cloaked with durroe, they proceeded through the Crossroads as unseen specters. Her heart raced with every twist of the back alleys and maze-like streets. Behind every turn could be Vhalla and the axe. Any moment could be the last when she felt this insatiable yearning, this intolerable incompleteness.

  Taavin came to a full stop.

  “She’s not here.”

  “Where is she?”

  “I don’t know.” He dropped hands with Vi and Deneya. The illusion vanished from around them and Taavin frantically searched the empty alleyway. “She was here. I saw her fall asleep.”

  If Vi had been in Vhalla’s shoes, she’d have kept moving. She’d sleep in spurts and always look over her shoulder. She wouldn’t linger in the same place for longer than she had to, and she would change her appearance at the first opportunity.

  Even after all this time, it still seemed she was her mother’s daughter. Yet Vi had failed spectacularly at using that to her advantage.

  With a grunt of rage, Vi spun, punching the wall of the building next to her. A singe mark was left behind from the crackle of flame around her fist, but her skin wasn’t split. There wasn’t even a bruise.

  Taavin and Deneya regarded her with expressions she didn’t recognize and didn’t bother trying to decipher.

  “We’ll find her. Whatever it takes, we’ll find her,” Vi swore. The axe was in this city, and she’d be damned if she was going to let it slip through her fingers.

  Chapter Thirty

  Vhalla had been right to head to the Crossroads. It was arguably the largest city in Solaris, sprawling in all directions. It was also one of the densest and boasted a diverse population.

  If there was anywhere the Windwalker could slip away, it was here.

  The days bled into each other. Day after day they split up and searched, looking high and low. The hunt for Vhalla was like running on a track. Vi was exhausting herself and getting nowhere.

  She wasn’t sure how she could know every inch of the Crossroads and not be able to find one woman. But Vhalla Yarl clearly didn’t want to be found. So she remained hidden.

  “What’s the plan for tomorrow?” Taavin asked, looking at the various maps Vi had purchased that were currently spread out across one of the tables in their shop. Vi had continued operating the curiosity shop in the hope that, for some reason, Vhalla would come back.

  She hadn’t.

  “We’re chasing a hare in a forest,” Deneya murmured, staring at the red, blue, and green ink that marked different areas they had each explored. “This is pointless.”

  “We have to find the axe.” Vi cracked her knuckles, folding and unfolding her hands to try to alleviate some of the restless energy that perpetually lived within her.

  “I know that.” Deneya folded her arms, leaning away from the table. “But I’m saying how we’re approaching this is pointless.”

  “What do you mean?” Taavin asked.

  “If you hunt a hare in the woods, you don’t chase it all about. It’ll outrun you, hide in holes you can’t reach into, run to places you didn’t know were there because it knows the woods better than you.”

  “Vhalla doesn’t know the Crossroads better than I do.” No one on the continent had a firmer grasp of all the maps of the world, Vi was certain.

  “Clearly, she does.”

  “Fine, then how do you catch a hare in the woods?”

  “Two ways.” Deneya held up her fingers. “One, you use a fox—a beast that knows the woods as well as the hare.”

  “Fresh out of foxes.”

  “Vi, she’s trying to be helpful,” Taavin said with a sigh, running a hand through his hair. Deneya ignored them both.

  “Two, you set a snare.” Vi pursed her lips but remained silent, motioning for the woman to continue. “I think we have a snare coming our way in the form of the Imperial army. If Vhalla Yarl is here, she’ll be drawn out by them—by the presence of Aldrik.”

  “Or go further underground. You heard her on the journey here, she was well and truly done with the prince.”

  “But she’s not. She never is,” Taavin said. “I think Deneya is right. This could be what draws Vhalla from her hiding place.”

  “I propose,” Deneya continued. She pointed to the center of the map, at the heart of the Crossroads. “We have two of us right in the thick of it all between now and when the Imperial army arrives.”

  “You want to watch over the hotel where the Imperials usually stay,” Vi realized.

  “Yes. If she’s going to try to see Aldrik, he’ll be there. And she might try to sneak in beforehand.”

  Vi tapped her fingers on the table and then turned to Taavin. “You have any other ideas?”

  “I wish I did… but all of this is new. I don’t have a single past world to leverage.” Discomfort flooded the words. He clearly hated that he didn’t know what was coming next and Vi couldn’t blame him. He was the one who’d always known what was happening.

  Now, he was starting to have to play things by ear.

  “All right, we’ll take turns on who stays in the center square. The other one of us will patrol the city.”

  “What if she comes back here?” Deneya asked.

  “One of us should keep an eye on the shop,” Taavin said. “Both of Vhalla’s visits to the shop are stones in the river. The second time is when the birth of a new Champion is cemented and the watch is given… While it doesn’t usually happen until after the Caverns are destroyed, things are changing and we can’t be too careful.” />
  “I agree.” Vi chose the path of least resistance. Even though Vhalla was still operating on the future Vi had told her when she was last here, there was a possibility she’d come back sooner.

  Anything was possible.

  Vhalla not coming back to the shop at all wasn’t something they could entirely rule out. More and more of the world was changing, and that meant Vi had to come to terms with the idea of a world without a Vi Solaris.

  “It’s crowded today,” Taavin murmured from Vi’s side. He wore the face of a Westerner. Vi was illusioned as well; they weren’t taking any chances with Vhalla recognizing them.

  “It is… Excuse me, sir.” She tapped the shoulder of a kindly looking gentleman at her side. “Do you know if there’s some kind of event happening today?”

  “You haven’t heard? Lord Ophain is coming ahead of the Imperial Army,” the man said. “He’s holding audiences for the public. I recommend you get in line if you’d like a word with him. I think it’ll be hours before you’ll get in, even if you line up now.”

  “Thank you for the advice.” He nodded at her and left. She then spoke only to Taavin. “You should get in line.”

  “What?”

  “Get inside that hotel and take a look around. Make sure she hasn’t been hiding among the staff this whole time.”

  “I think the staff would recognize her, given her acclaim…”

  “One would hope, but we well know how people only see what they want to.” Vi squeezed his hand. “Come back tonight and report on whatever you’ve found.”

  “All right.” He moved to leave, but Vi held fast.

  She pulled him close, giving him a gentle kiss. “Thank you for all your help.”

  “It’s my duty.” Taavin smiled and gave a wink. “And my honor to follow you to the ends of the earth.”

  “Let’s hope it’s not the end,” Vi called after him. She watched him leave with a small smile, one that slowly fell as she turned away. When he was at her side, the world was good and everything would be all right.

  When he left, the world was cold. The only thing that gave her warmth was the flame of her purpose, the driving force of why she was even on this earth at all—to summon Yargen once more.