Blood of the Tallan (The Petralist Book 7)

by Frank Morin

  “I bet I could win the sausage eating competition in Faulenrost,” Hamish said with a grin.

  Verena smiled at his enthusiasm. “And I feel like I could punch Shona to the moon.”

  Hamish almost said, “Prove it,” but Connor looked worried. He should lighten up. Now that Verena was a Rumbler, chances of her and Shona killing each other were sharply diminished. In fact, they seemed to bond better while pummeling each other.

  They moved through a city thronged with partygoers. People crowded around food and drink tables and packed dance floors. Everywhere Hamish looked, people were eating, drinking, and dancing. The noise was like a constant roar, and everyone seemed to be trying to talk or laugh over each other. There was a frantic, almost desperate edge to the noise, and a sense of charged emotion flowed just under the surface of the revelry.

  Jean looked around, a frown on her face as they crossed one tight-packed square. Hamish asked, “You feel it too?”

  She nodded thoughtfully. “Everyone is trying so hard to forget what’s coming.”

  That was it. Hamish recognized it immediately. “In a few days, we could all be dead. This is the last chance to forget about it all.”

  Verena looked over and said, “I hope they manage it. After tonight, no one will get a break until we win.”

  Hamish appreciated the fact that she didn’t acknowledge the chance they might lose. Why worry about that?

  He wouldn’t. Not tonight, anyway.

  So he pushed aside his worries about the upcoming battle and focused on the party. They soon reached the command building. It had suffered great damage in the swarm attack and was encased in a layer of wooden scaffolding. A large crowd had gathered in the large square outside for the Boulder dance toss, and already over fifty pairs of Boulders had lined up to participate.

  Rory and Anika swept into the square, followed by a brightly dressed throng, including Ivor and Shona. A Pathfinder magnified Rory’s voice as he and his bride took their places in front of the gathered Boulders and Rumblers, while Ivor and Shona joined the ranks.

  “Who’s ready for the Boulder toss?”

  A deafening cheer answered him. Anika added, “Mine Rory and I will set the height. Losers serve drinks.”

  She pointed to a few tables loaded with barrels of wines, ales, ciders, and juices, enough varieties to slake any thirst. A host of servers were struggling to keep up with demand, and they all raised fists in thanks when they heard the announcement.

  Hamish was about to head for the drink tables to test if Blades could drink more before having to take a breath, but Connor pulled Verena toward the line of participants.

  “I don’t know what to do,” she protested. She might look tiny compared to some of the hulking Boulders in their battle leathers, but anyone falling for her cuteness facade and underestimating Verena would regret it.

  Jean slid an arm around Hamish’s waist as they watched the competition. He wished Tomas and Cameron were still alive. They’d be running a busy betting racket and would no doubt make a mint getting folks to bet against Verena.

  Rory gripped Anika by the waist and stole a kiss before tossing his bride into the air to a burst of cheering.

  “I figured he’d throw her higher,” Jean commented.

  “They always start low. Every round they go higher. That’s the challenge of the lead couple. Everyone else has to match the height of each throw. The person who misses by the most gets a negative point. Two points, and a pair are out and have to do whatever the rules of the match say for losers.”

  “Sounds easy,” she said.

  “That’s why Connor is making Verena go first.” Hamish pointed.

  The round passed quickly, each pair stepping forward so one of them could toss their partner. Most got pretty close to the same height Rory had. Verena started chewing on her lip like she did when nervous or really concentrating.

  Shona tossed Ivor, matching Rory’s throw perfectly. Ivor sprayed glittering droplets of water across the square, eliciting laughter and more cheering.

  When Connor and Verena took their places a moment later, everyone expected Connor to throw Verena. When she instead grabbed his waist and swelled with granite, a murmur swept through the crowd.

  “Are loaned powers allowed?” Shona asked Rory. She didn’t look upset that Verena was participating, but it seemed she couldn’t help ask the question anyway.

  She couldn’t have set Verena up more perfectly. Verena spoke loudly enough for everyone to hear. “Connor didn’t loan me granite. I have a new affinity!”

  The murmurs turned into open gasps as Verena max-tapped to show off her new affinity and throw Connor. She had fun with it too, her skin glowing white, her perfectly carved body outlined by her spectacular dress.

  She forgot about the height requirement.

  Swept up in the moment, she launched Connor so hard that he soared high over the nearby buildings, his laughter sounding a bit strained.

  “Great throw!” Jean shouted, clapping enthusiastically with most of the crowd.

  “Yeah, if she wants to lose,” Hamish replied. Verena had definitely gained a powerful granite affinity, but she clearly didn’t know how to use it.

  Luckily she could still catch. Verena snatched Connor out of the air as he fell, spinning around twice to help bleed off speed. She cradled him easily in her mighty arms and stole a kiss to a round of cheering. Verena always did things with style.

  Hamish took the opportunity to mimic her, spinning Jean to steal a kiss. She was also tapping obsidian and turned the surprise spin into a graceful twirl, her smile brightening the entire square.

  When Verena put Connor down, many people crowded around. Ivor asked, “You helped Verena establish her first affinity?”

  When Connor nodded, he dropped to one knee beside Verena and took her hand, kissing it in a gallant manner. “Congratulations, Verena. This is a banner day indeed.”

  “Show-off,” Shona muttered to him before adding to Verena, “Now we can train together every day.”

  She raised a fist, which Verena bumped with her own, and both of them grinned. “I can’t wait.”

  “Friends by fist-fighting are friends indeed,” Hamish said.

  Jean rolled her eyes. “It’s possible to make friends without fighting.”

  “But not usually as fun.”

  Anika hugged Verena tight and said in Grandurian, “I’m so proud of you, Verena! What a gift on my wedding day to see you join the sisterhood of the battle maidens.”

  Verena looked on the verge of tears. Girls could get really emotional, especially when they hadn’t eaten dinner yet.

  Rory said, “Congratulations, Verena. We’re happy for you, but I think it safe to say you lost round one.”

  “Oh,” she said, flushing and glancing into the air where she’d thrown Connor. “Oops.”

  That generated a general round of laughter, but Connor said, “If you don’t mind, I’d like Verena to take the next turn too. She needs the practice.”

  “Agreed,” Rory said, glancing at the others, who all nodded in turn.

  Ivor asked, “Can you repeat this, Connor? Can you really help others gain new affinities too?” He swept a hand across the crowd, who pressed in closer, an expectant hush settling over the courtyard.

  “It’s already proven,” Hamish interjected loudly, raising Jean’s hand high in his. “Jean and I both gained obsidian tonight!”

  That triggered a round of cheers, and Connor added, “I plan to try helping as many people as possible gain affinities in the next few days.”

  More cheering. Many people started shouting questions, asking when they could try.

  Rory gestured toward his throat, so Connor applied quartzite to it. Rory’s voice boomed loudly over the din. “Calm yourselves. This is wonderful news. We’ll put together a schedule and do this in an organized way. Don’t worry. We need everyone, so you’ll get your chance.”

  That elicited more cheering, and Rory said, “We’ll as
sign a senior officer to work with you to organize the schedule. How fast can you do it?”

  “I think it’ll depend on each person, but it didn’t take long with Verena, Hamish, and Jean,” Connor said.

  Hamish wondered if other people Connor didn’t know so well would take longer. It had seemed like it took a certain amount of understanding of the person he was working with in order to figure out the affinity construction. Connor would make it work.

  “You might get tired, though,” Jean said, her tone cautioning. “You don’t know yet if you’ll face side effects like when you fleshcraft.”

  That was a good point, but Connor looked fine. He said, “We’ll take that as it comes, but tonight we have a party to enjoy.”

  The Boulder toss resumed with lots of good cheer. Verena managed to survive two more rounds, her throws not great, but not the worst, either. She was wonderfully strong, but it took time to master the nuances of applying such strength, and on the third toss she again threw Connor too high. He didn’t seem to mind.

  Hamish was happy to lead Jean to the drink table and order drinks from the two of them. Business was brisk, but he managed to get both Connor and Verena to refill his cider glass three times. He really could drink it down faster, but still felt himself growing full too soon. He’d need to convince Connor to work his gluttoncrafting on him.

  Eventually they all slipped away and Connor lifted them high above the city on a platform of air. It was a nice way to travel, but not as free as flying in his suit. Still, he could enjoy hugging Jean better, so Hamish decided he liked it. They spotted a running dance on the open lands south of the city.

  “Look. Striders and Wingrunners,” Connor said.

  Jean leaned against Hamish, oohing at the sight, and Verena slipped an arm around Connor’s waist. She extracted a couple pieces of quartzite and created a long-vision sightscreen in front of them to magnify the view. Hamish should have thought of that. He was the one with obsidian, after all.

  Fast movers were racing across the land, mixing and blending together in intricate patterns that seemed impossible for so many individuals to create together. Several times, Hamish felt Jean tense beside him. “They’re going to crash.”

  Somehow they slipped past each other, often close enough to touch as they engaged in the singular dance experience.

  “I want to try that sometime,” Verena said.

  “Sure, but we’ll need to practice a lot. I’m not sure even I could keep up with all of those moves,” Connor admitted.

  When the running dance ended, the group crossed back over the city. They spotted musicians playing to enthusiastic dancers in every square, but Verena insisted they return to the main square. She said, “I heard good things about Shona’s personal band.”

  As they settled toward the ground, Hamish spotted the musicians, who were arranged on the wedding platform. A dozen men and women playing a range of wood and brass instruments. He wasn’t a musician, and growing up in Alasdair, they’d been severely limited in what music they could enjoy, but even he could tell those musicians were special.

  The sounds of a popular dance tune wafted up to them as they approached, but it was somehow more. The notes were purer, richer, harmonized so much better than he’d ever heard. Jean’s head cocked to one side, her eyes wide as she listened, mesmerized. Verena sighed, a slow smile spreading across her lips.

  “Even better than I expected. They’re as good as the royal orchestra that plays for King Henrik in Edderitz.” She started swaying to the music even before they landed.

  “How are they doing it?” Hamish asked. “I’ve heard good music, but nothing like this.”

  “They’re Blade musicians,” Verena said, tugging Connor toward the dance floor, which was packed with couples.

  “Of course,” Hamish laughed, pulling Jean after. “I bet we can learn to play any instrument now.”

  “I bet you can even learn to sing,” Jean teased.

  “I’m not that bad,” Hamish protested, but he was. He vowed to start taking voice lessons if they survived the upcoming battle. He’d heard that good singers needed to consume extra portions of sweetbreads to help their throats. Or it might have been sugar. He wasn’t sure if he was remembering right, so decided to eat more of both, just to be safe.

  The four of them lost themselves in the dancing for a while. The music wrapped around them like a blanket and blocked out worries for the future, drained away fatigue, and made them lighter on their feet. It was hard to stop dancing, although they did pause every half hour to wolf down another five bowls of food and dessert before plunging back in.

  During the first break, Connor taught Verena how to purge granite. She was very reluctant to do so, even though she really wanted to get some loaned obsidian for the dancing. Hamish and Jean watched carefully, but didn’t purge their obsidian yet.

  “It’s all right. After we’re done, you can absorb some more granite,” Connor told her.

  “Just don’t forget to purge before sleeping,” Hamish reminded them. Connor had regaled them with stories of double-tap sickness and the debilitating effects of not purging.

  Connor glanced around. “I wish our families could be here.”

  Jean smiled, her expression turning wistful. “Gran would love this music.”

  “My siblings would eat out half the city,” Hamish laughed, suddenly missing his big family. They hadn’t visited nearly enough through the winter, although he’d already sent a copy of Schwinkendorf’s cookbook to his mother via courier.

  “Small price to pay,” Connor assured him.

  “Yeah, because Shona’s paying for it,” Hamish responded.

  “We need to get our parents together soon,” Verena told Connor. “I think they’ll get along wonderfully.”

  “You bet. Wait till your mom experiences one of my mom’s . . .” Oddly, Connor trailed off, frowning.

  Verena and Jean both looked at him funny, but Hamish piped in, “Yeah, her hugs are the best.”

  “I knew you’d pick up where I left off,” Connor said, as if he’d planned for the break, but Hamish knew better. Connor never paused like that, not when talking about his mother. Something was wrong. He filed it away to ask Connor about it later.

  First, he needed to dance with his love. Hamish grabbed Jean’s hand and together they rushed back to the dance floor. Verena and Connor followed close behind and the four of them launched into an obsidian-fueled dance competition, trying to outdo each other with extra spins, twirls, and dips. Other dancers stopped to stare as they moved together with obsidian-enhanced grace, the girls twirling in their finery, all of them moving like acrobats, their laughter mixing with the music.

  Hamish found himself laughing more than he ever had before. It was just so much fun, so perfect to move together with Jean in such harmony. The freedom of it rivaled flying in his battle suit. He looked forward to sharing many such moments with Jean all their lives.

  The musicians soon recognized what was happening, and they took up the challenge, increasing the tempo, setting a blistering pace that forced all of the other dancers off the floor to watch. Only the four of them could keep up, their feet moving in a blur, bodies twisting, turning, and weaving together, half a step away from disaster, but riding the wave of music on and on. Jean loved it, her restored hair spinning about her perfectly healed face, smiling with more joy than she’d shown since the terrible day Aonghus burned her. Seeing her so happy made Hamish giddy with joy.

  He was surprised when Kilian and Aifric joined them. Verena actually gaped and exclaimed, “I’ve never seen Kilian dance!”

  “He must practice in secret,” Connor commented as Kilian and Aifric slipped into the dance without missing a beat.

  Kilian was an excellent dancer and he kept up with all of Aifric’s personalities as different women cycled through the control position. He adapted easily to their different dancing styles, making it look like they’d choreographed their moves before joining the dance. Hamish was imp
ressed. Kilian kept up, despite lacking obsidian, and Aifric managed to keep up too. Some of her personalities had obsidian affinities, but not all of them, and yet they never faltered.

  They danced until the wee hours of the morning before staggering off the dance floor to the enthusiastic cheering of the remaining spectators. The musicians looked totally exhausted, but exultant as they raised their instruments in salute. Verena and Connor paused to speak with Kilian, but Hamish led Jean to the platform to thank the Bladed musicians.

  Their leader, a whip-thin harpist with wispy, white hair, grinned as he bowed over Jean’s hand. “Lady Jean, we’ve often played to high nobility, but never have we gotten to push our own limits like we have tonight. You gave us as much of a gift as we gave you.”

  “I don’t think any of us will ever forget tonight,” Hamish said, shaking the man’s hand in turn.

  As he escorted Jean back to her suite later, she leaned her head against his shoulder and said, “That was a wonderful evening, Hamish. If that ends up being our last party together in this life, at least we ended on a high note.”

  He felt the weight of responsibility rush back in, the awesome challenge they faced in defeating Queen Dreokt and her enormous army. When they reached her suite, he kissed her tenderly, then held her gaze.

  “This won’t be our last.”

  She smiled, the fight strong in her. “Then get some sleep, because we have a lot of work to do.”

  19

  Sometimes Completing a Puzzle Is Depressing

  The next morning, half the city slept in late, but Connor couldn’t. He’d used gluttoncrafting to transform all the food he ate into pure energy, so despite the vigorous late-night dancing, he awoke rested.

  He exited his small room in the palace and trotted across Merkland. The cobblestones sparkled with a light coating of dew, and the morning smelled bright and clean, as if it had rained a little after he retired. Decorations and tables were still set up, but the food had been put away, and most of the trash collected. Between Shona, Ivor, and Rory, they had Merkland running super efficiently.