by Sara Kincaid
“Archers ready,” came the cry from the leader of the Kaldarian party. The metal studs on his leather armor gleamed in the sunlight and he brushed his dark hair from his eyes. He raised a hand and a half dozen soldiers turned, bows held aloft and arrows ready.
The wind rushed in Rina’s ears and her wings hummed with purpose as she propelled herself over the rock garden. She pulled her bow from over her shoulder and drew the string back with an arrow. Her hands shook as she waited, gauging when she’d be within range. A slight breeze puckered, pulling her slightly higher, altering the trajectory of her arrow. She let it fly anyway and quickly drew another, hardly paying attention to where it landed. When arrows sliced through the air near her feet, she shot skyward.
Higher and higher Rina’s wings carried her. The wind rushed passed, whistling in her ears, her hair a ribbon of black behind her. With another great beat of her wings, she rose to the treetops and finally up into the great blue sky.
From this height, she allowed her wings to spread to their full expanse. The gold tips, alight with special runes and protections, a gift from Eli, caught the sun, creating a glare that would be seen from across the battlefield. Her brothers would come.
Though Rina flew dozens of feet above the fleeing party, her eyes never left the man who held her heart. Across the distance, their eyes locked, his own full of fear.
After a moment, she rolled forward and plunged into a dive. Rina shouldered her bow and drew her sword in a fluid sweeping motion. Faster she hurtled toward the earth, a ball of rage, determination and feathers. Her wings beat magnificently, carrying her lean frame forward like a cannon. Moments later, Rina heard the cries of her fellow Aviators, a faint high-pitched whistle piercing through the battlefield behind her.
“NightWind, pull up!” FireStorm’s harsh voice rang out behind her. Raze Uxton stood out ahead of a band of warriors, their wings flapping in unison, bows at ready. His dark hair shone and the brass buttons of his battle gear glimmered in the sunlight. He stretched his hand forward as he called out to her, as if he could simply reach out and touch her. But part of him knew that his effort was in vain. Rina never listened to him. Not anymore. He was the one who had brought her to the Aviators, who had put the idea in Solon’s head of recruiting a woman to the post. Not just any woman. The sister of their best warrior.
But Rina’s head was clouded by that damned Mystic and her belief in the old ways. She was sacrificing herself for Arayna who squandered her most precious and powerful troops. Raze fumed as his eyes followed her progress, as swift as an eagle and loud as the shrieking Night Wind she had tamed on her first leap from the great mountain.
But Rina was committed and gravity had her within its grasp, unable to obey the command if she’d wanted to do so. She leveled out, slowing slightly and that’s when the arrows came, pouring down like rain. Then came a crack like thunder, an explosion rising from the earth and echoed below. Rina started at the sound and the arrow that followed.
A moment later, she felt an awful tearing in her left shoulder followed by the shattering of glass. Shards of lightning tube burst around her and the spark itself was swallowed up into the ether. All at once, Rina began to plummet to the earth, no wings for a buffer and no way to stop the fall.
Rina crashed to the ground, her shoulder a blaze of pain and her wings frozen in mid-beat.
Chapter Six
Eli
Mt. Yama was angry. Trespassing soldiers trampled across her great back, muddying pathways, destroying her foliage and spilling the blood of her precious devotees. Even worse, they stole the Mystics from Nia herself.
Eli could feel the mountain rumbling with indignation beneath his feet as he walked at sword point down a wide, sloping path. He and Zaid had stood strong together, but they were simply no match for the dozen soldiers who appeared in their enclave armed to the teeth. Winds whipped furiously against them and patches of blood wet his tunic, dripping from his brow. Their meager uprising had not lasted long.
The elderly Mystics were too frail for the journey, so Eli and Zaid carried them on their backs. Moriyo’s long ponytail tickled Eli’s neck. The old man was as thin as paper, his breath a whisper. But he seemed unafraid.
“Eli,” Zaid breathed. Eli glanced at Zaid and then followed the elder Mystic’s gesture to look behind them. Someone was climbing the tower by the rock garden. A flash of gold flashed from the person’s back. Rina.
Zaid and Eli watched Rina climb to the top of the tower. Her hair was a thread of ink against the sky, her face unreadable from such a great distance. “Eli!” Her voice echoed across the hillside, full of pain, anger and something else Eli couldn’t quite place. Regret? But Rina the warrior regretted nothing. Emotions were dangerous on the battlefield, she’d told him once. But anyone between here and Kaldar could hear the emotion that fueled her sharp cry.
The soldiers turned as one in the direction of Rina’s voice and the entire cavalry watched in awe as Rina’s wings unfurled like silken sails. Eli couldn’t help but feel a bit of pride as he watched her. As much as she denied it, she was meant for the Aviators, to be the first Aviatrix. And he’d been meant to give her those beautiful wings.
The soldiers around them drew their weapons, bowstrings pulled taut. Even facing the weapons of a dozen men, Rina didn’t waver. She rocketed through the sky like an eagle diving for prey, her own bow armed and ready. Her black hair whipped like a flag, fanning out behind her head in a short stream.
“Steady men,” the leader of the Kaldarians called as Rina loosed a bevy of arrows in swift succession. “Fire!” came the cry, a moment later. But as soon as Rina had released her last arrow, she flung the bow over her shoulder and flapped her wings hard, sending herself upward toward the blinding sun. A flash signaled that Rina had risen to the apex of her climb and she hovered there, drawing a weapon from her belt.
Eli, too, heard Raze’s cry, warning Rina against the dive and looked up at the legion of Aviators crossing the divide between the towers of Eagle Palace and the mountain’s base. Eli never thought he’d see the day when Raze Uxton came to his rescue. He would have laughed but he was distracted by Rina’s impressive display.
Whether or not she would have pulled up in response to FireStorm’s command, Eli couldn’t say. But Rina had already committed. There was no way she could safely pull out of that dive. Her wings cut through the wind, singing like a chorus. Eyes blazing and her pink mouth turned into a vicious sneer, Eli knew he’d never forget the look of pure rage that twisted his beloved’s face.
The soldiers tensed, readying for an onslaught when a sharp crack rang out from behind Eli from a mechanical crossbow. He and the entire battalion flinched. Not a second later, Rina’s lightning tube shattered and her cry echoed down the mountain. His mouth open in horror, Eli watched as Rina’s limp form, her wings frozen mid-flap, plummeted to the earth. She hit the mossy ground and lay still.
“Rina!” Eli tugged at his bonds, instinct overtaking his good sense. Still she didn’t move. “Rina!” The cry ripped itself from his chest and his knees nearly gave out beneath him. She can’t be dead. A groan burst from his lips as a soldier smacked the side of his head with the flat of a sword.
“Come along, there.” The guard pulled him roughly by the collar and Eli tightened his grip to keep from dropping Master Moriyo.
As they hurried down the last few feet of the mountain, Eli felt Master Moriyo’s cool hand against his arm. He glanced over his shoulder, his eyes seeking his beloved. She moved no more.
Chapter Seven
Rina
SEVEN YEARS AGO
“A looking glass tells you only what the eye can see.” Sonya leaned over her daughter’s shoulder, their eyes meeting in the reflection. “But you are so much more than this. You were before this moment and you will forever be so.” Sonya blinked, her earth brown eyes lined with kohl, the streak of black extending out beyond her brow l
ine. Her mouth was small and bow-like, her own wash of black hair now streaked with white.
Side-by-side, Rina couldn’t deny that they were related. They shared the same small, sloping nose, wide face and rounded cheekbones. Sonya swallowed hard. She’d already lost one child to the barracks and the battlefield and now was at risk of losing one more. She hid her fears from her eldest daughter in a way only a mother could. Her daughter had no choice in the matter, being formally summoned by Regent Solon. Rina needed strength. Not doubts.
Rina broke their gaze first, bowing her head. Her fingers worked quickly, pulling each strand of her own black hair into an inky braid that tumbled in a tight rope over her shoulder, tickling her stomach at the very end. Her hands were still splattered with glaze. Normally she’d scrub them clean following a day with Master Miyabi. But yesterday had been her last day as an apprentice with the master sculptor and she couldn’t bring herself to lose this final piece of her old life.
Today she was scheduled to report for training with the Burgan military. After training, she would make the steep climb up to the top of Mt. Yama where she would receive her wings and, following in her brother’s footsteps, make the leap of faith off the highest cliff. She would then embrace her new life as a member of the Aviators. “Jump or die,” she whispered, mouthing the words into the mirror.
“Niko would be proud of you.”
At the mention of her brother, Rina felt the barriers she’d erected give way and a sob of pain escaped her carefully crafted surface. The day she’d received her apprenticeship with Master Miyabi had been the best of her life. Today was the second worst of her existence, following only after the day she and her family had received news of Niko’s death. Sonya grasped Rina’s hand. She lifted a tear-stained face to address her mother’s reflection. “Do you really think so?”
“I know so. You make us proud.” Her eyes shone.
“They’ll never accept me.” The soldiers. They would frown on a woman joining their ranks. They would sneer at her, call her names behind her back. Or worse.
“Raze will be there for you. He was your brother’s closest friend. He’ll look out for you.” Her voice was emphatic, wanting to believe this as much as her daughter wanted and needed to herself.
Raze Uxton. FireStorm. Leader of the Aviators. Rina’s heart fluttered when she thought of him. Tall. Thick black hair held fast with some sort of wax or resin. His long, triangular face and sculpted jaw gave way to a bow-like mouth that Rina had tasted in the breezeway at a military function nearly two year ago. Before Niko’s death. Before all of this.
FireStorm had come to their home personally on two occasions. First, to inform them of Niko’s death. He’d stood there in the doorway, his eyes downcast, his toe picking at the dirt and his hat in his hands. He could barely meet their mother’s gaze.
The second time he had appeared, he carried a scroll of heavy paper woven with silk and bearing Regent Solon’s seal, Rina’s summons to join the Aviators. Rina was surprised the Regent even knew her name. But she fit the figure of an Aviator perfectly: tall, thin, muscular but not bulky. And, she was a stellar shot with a bow. Niko had seen to that, teaching her all he had learned and even gifting her with a handmade bow when she’d officially received her apprenticeship with Master Miyabi so many years ago. Plus, rumor suggested that the last two recruits had failed their leap of faith, plummeting to their deaths from the great mountain’s peak.
Rina received the summons with grace in the presence of the leader of the Aviators. “It would please us to have you in our ranks, Rina. Especially as the sister of our former leader, SquallTamer. You will be welcome.” His eyes had searched her own and Rina felt a confusing mixture of apprehension and desire in his gaze. She’d stood still, her shoulders back and her eyes unblinking. As soon as the Aviator had marched away, his back rigid and his arms stiff at his sides, Rina had sunk to her knees, curling in on herself like a leaf as the life she had known melted away.
“Master Miyabi will not be lost to you forever. Perhaps after you complete your service, you will be allowed to return to her.”
“Master Miyabi will have to take on a new student, a new apprentice.”
“Why would she have to do that?”
Rina was quiet for a moment. They both knew the answer to that question. The path to becoming an Aviator was fraught with difficulties. Not every recruit made the jump off of Mt. Yama successfully. More than this, Master Miyabi was quite old. She’d picked Rina after nearly three decades of running her shop alone. “It’s impossible. That path is lost to me now.” Rina bowed her head.
Sonya put her hands on her daughter’s shoulders and placed a kiss on the top of her head. “I can’t know where this new journey will lead for you. But I have faith in you and in the Regent. He would not have selected you without careful consideration.” Sonya got to her feet with a whisper of blue silk, and left the room.
Finally alone, Rina let out a deep breath. When she’d received word of her summons to the Aviator battalion, she’d dissolved. First, she’d cried alone in her bed. Then, she’d told her mother and father who had appeared shaken but would not shed tears in her presence. Finally, she’d gone to Master Miyabi, her friend, and confidante, someone who was both mother and sister to her. Master Miyabi rarely showed emotion, but when she’d received the news of her beloved apprentice, she’d bowed her head and brushed lightly at her eyes.
A tiny light, fueled by the Mystic’s strange spark, glittered on a shelf beside the vanity table and mirror. The silvery glow shone like an oil lamp in the looking glass and leant a halo of white light to Rina’s deep brown eyes. Gazing at her hands, Rina was suddenly overwhelmed with the urge to clean them. Leaving remnants of her old life would only invite critique from her new brothers-in-arms. Grasping a cotton cloth bearing the facade of Mt. Yama, she dipped it into the ewer of water at her bedside and slowly wiped away the last bit of evidence of her former life, leaving a rolling cloud the color of rust behind in the once clear water.
The task complete, she wrung out the towel and folded it neatly beside the ewer. She stood and gazed warily at this new person before her. Dressed in soft gray, the color worn by Burgan recruits, her tunic hugged her hips and ended mid-thigh. The cuffs were meticulously sewn with golden thread. Beneath her tunic she wore dark cotton pants and new boots that laced up the side of her calf. She certainly resembled the other recruits she’d seen wandering through the marketplace, but she couldn’t help but think that there was something missing.
Chapter Eight
Rina
Rina awoke gradually as if she were rising from a swampy mist. At first, she was only aware of the darkness behind her eyelids. Then, she regained the feeling of her body and her limbs. Finally, she felt pain throb down her left arm in an unrelenting tirade. Slowly, she opened her eyes, squinting into the fluttering light from sconces on the wall. Eli.
“So, you’re awake.” Rina blinked and Raze’s angular face and slicked back hair came into focus. She groaned with dismay and tried to roll onto her side. “Don’t turn away from me, Rina. You disobeyed a direct order.”
A flash of anger rocketed through her and Rina roughly swept her hair out of her eyes with her right hand. She sat up, thick layers of covers tumbling from her shoulders. “Where are the Mystics?”
Raze narrowed his eyes, but allowed Rina to change the subject. “You mean Eli.” His name hung awkwardly between them. Raze shifted his weight from one foot to the other and kept his hands clasped in front of him. The dark blue uniform accentuated his light skin and the gold leaf pattern of his elite rank glittered subtly. “Gone.”
“Gone?” Rina swept what remained of the covers from her lap and made as if to stand, grimacing as she moved her arm.
“Yes. Gone.”
“What are you going to do about it?”
Raze raised his pointed chin and licked his lips. “You should rest. Had yo
u listened to orders, you wouldn’t be in this predicament.”
Rina remained standing. Someone had removed her battle gear and dressed her in a soft cotton robe tied at the waist. Her face was a mask of defiance, but the sharpness of the pain pinched around her eyes. Even so, her heart clenched at the thought of Eli held captive by the Kaldarians. She’d failed to protect him. Niko’s face flashed before her eyes. “Who has been sent after them?”
“After them?” Raze waved a dismissive hand. “You must be joking. There are ways this must be done. Diplomatic ways. The Regent will go to the council first. Besides, we can’t spare our troops now. Our perimeters have been breached. We have to protect the people.”
“The Mystics are our people, too.” Rina caught sight of her uniform and turned her back to her commander. She disrobed quickly, careful of her injured shoulder and tossed the garment on the bed. In spite of himself, Raze’s eyes lingered on Rina’s slim frame and a twinge of regret filled him. “The least you could do is turn around. You don’t own me.” He obliged and turned away, embarrassed.
Rina sat slowly onto the bed and leaned forward to inch her pants up her thighs and hips. Her shoulder was a mass of cotton wrapping and sharp black stitches that bisected her skin, pulling together the hole that had been wrenched into her flesh by the arrow and the shattered glass. “Where do you think you’re going?”
“To find them.” Gritting her teeth, Rina buttoned her pants and began to work on easing her shirt around her shoulders.
“Request denied.”
Rina whipped around, her eyes ablaze with rage. “Who said I was asking?”
“You made an oath. One flock. You said it to me, in fact. With at least a dozen witnesses. You answer to me.”