From Flame and Ash

by Carrie Ann Ryan

  It was all about Water and Air, not so much about the court that ruled them both.

  It had been different in the Obscurité Kingdom, but maybe that was because we were traveling towards it the entire time when I was there. Now, I currently sat next to the King of Obscurité on the ship heading towards the Air territory.

  It was all a little bit different, but I was trying to soak in all the information I could. I always felt like I was a couple of steps behind, even though I shouldn’t feel that way.

  I had learned so much in the past year, but I needed to learn more. It didn’t help that everyone kept secrets as if they were afraid to talk about what had been harming their realm for centuries.

  No matter how many books I read, it wouldn’t be enough. I knew that I needed to see each territory. That once I did, somehow, it would all come together.

  It had to.

  Because there was no way I could keep going like this, trying to figure out the prophecy when I was so in the dark.

  The Spirit Priestess will come of five, yet of none at all.

  She will be strength of light, of darkness, and choice.

  You will lose what you had.

  You will lose what you want.

  You will lose what you will.

  You will lose what you sow.

  Then you will find the will.

  Find the fortune.

  And then you will make a choice.

  A choice above all.

  A sacrifice above will.

  A fate left denied.

  And a loss meant to soothe.

  I’d rolled the prophecy through my mind over and over, trying to come to terms with it.

  Because I knew it was only the first part. It felt like a beginning, even with the word sacrifice in it. The Spirit Priestess will come of five. Of five elements? Five territories? And yet none at all? Was it because I had originally come with no magic at all? Or because I hadn’t come from this realm at all?

  Strength of light, of darkness, and choice. That made sense to me. Of both realms, both light, and dark.

  But light wasn’t just good, and dark wasn’t all bad. It was only their names, simply what they had chosen to call themselves. It had nothing to do with morality. And that was something I wasn’t even sure the Maisons themselves understood.

  I would lose what I had? Was that my friends? Or my past?

  I would lose what I wanted?

  I thought of Easton. Rhodes. Maybe it wasn’t as simple as just a crush. As basic as feelings.

  I would lose what I will and what I sow? I didn’t understand those. Maybe it wasn’t my time to understand them yet.

  And I would find the will. Did I need to find the will to keep going?

  I needed to find the fortune?

  And there was a choice. What kind of choice? I was choosing to unlock my elements. Or maybe I wasn’t.

  I didn’t like the word sacrifice. It scared me. But then again, everyone around me continually sacrificed what they loved to protect their realm.

  Why should I be any different?

  I had almost died to discover answers before, would I have to again?

  A loss to soothe. A fate left denied.

  I needed to go over it all again, there just wasn’t time. We were constantly moving, and I barely had time to breathe.

  It didn’t matter that we were on a ship now, that we were traveling through the rivers of the long land mass that bisected the Water territory. Soon, we would enter the lower seas before we came up to the Air territory’s border.

  Yes, there was time to go over it, but I couldn’t speak openly. Not really. Because while there was no crew on this ship, I didn’t feel like it was the right time to talk about myself when we were here to help Rhodes find his grandparents and bring them back to his dying mother.

  That put things into perspective for me.

  “Do you want to learn how to do this?” Rhodes asked, his eyebrows lowered as he concentrated on what he was doing.

  I stood up quickly and walked towards him, nodding.

  “Of course. I want to help.”

  “Okay. You’re going to have to use your Water Wielding to do this, but if it’s too much for you, you can also work on the Air Wielding.”

  “Okay,” I said, not really understanding what he was saying.

  “Usually, I have Luken work with me on ships like this, but since he’s back at the house taking care of Rosamond and making sure she’s protected, it’s just me and the rest of the Obscurité team. Having another with both of the Lumière elements will be helpful.”

  I nodded, holding out my hands. “Just tell me what to do.”

  “Okay, usually we work with a crew about this size, maybe a little bit smaller. Wyn, Teagan, Easton, and Arwin are working with their actual hands rather than their elements. So they’re dealing with the sails and directing them and making sure we can get through. I’ve been working with Water and Air to push us through the Water territory towards the Air border. We will go faster with your help. So, what I need you to do is focus on both of your Wieldings. But just the Lumière ones.”

  Easton grumbled under his breath, and I looked over my shoulder at him. He turned away quickly, working with something on the mast.

  “All I’m saying is that Earth and Fire won’t help us at the moment because we are too far above the actual bottom of the sea for Earth Wielding to help. And Fire won’t help the ship move forward.”

  “It would help if there was an engine of some sort, wouldn’t it?” I asked and then winced. “Not that engines actually work in the Maison realm.”

  “They don’t, but there are ways to use hot air to get across areas,” Easton said cryptically.

  “Like a hot air balloon?”

  “Somewhat.”

  “Anyway, let’s work on what we have in front of us rather than what we don’t actually have.”

  I looked at Rhodes and nodded again. “Okay, let’s do this. What do I need to do with my Wielding?”

  “Focus on the water itself and move it in small waves around the ship’s hull. Don’t press in, we don’t want to buckle the wood, but you can move forward with each push.”

  “You know, if you used some metal in your ships, the Air and Fire Wielders together could probably move you just as fast,” Easton said casually.

  “I know,” Rhodes said softly. “But you try explaining to my father or even my uncle about the need for Earth Wielders who can use metal, and Fire Wielders who can help with Air to push us across.”

  “Maybe one day we will,” Easton said softly, looking at me before turning his head away.

  I listened to Rhodes as we slowly moved our hands together in unison, pushing the Water and Air as one towards the south so we could cut the boat through the waves of the sea. There was actual air moving into the sails as well, and every once in a while, Rhodes would throw one hand up into the air to push it towards the front of the ship, moving us a bit faster.

  It was easier to work with my Water Wielding right then, not because I was working with Rhodes, but because I was focused on one small task. I wasn’t thinking about everything all at once, just like Easton had told me to try and avoid. So, I was using both of their help to try and figure out what I needed to do to control my Wielding.

  We were so busy making sure that we were going in the right direction, only taking turns to stop and either rest or eat something, that I didn’t have time to feel awkward about anything.

  I didn’t have time to think about my emotions and my feelings when it came to the people on the ship. For that, I was grateful.

  Because this wasn’t about me. It was about Rhodes and trying to figure out how to break down the prophecy so it actually made sense. So it could be useful. Right now, the words the old man had told me just confused me. It made me think that nobody knew exactly what Spirit Priestesses were supposed to do.

  Maybe I was just an anomaly. Perhaps I wasn’t supposed to help people.

  Maybe I wa
s just a symbol.

  But someone who could get things done. I had to remind myself of that. Symbols were important.

  I just didn’t want to be useless.

  “We should be there in the next day or so,” Rhodes said softly. “It really just depends on the headwinds. Even if we’re using our Wielding, it takes a long time to cross the distance.”

  “Still faster than going across the Earth territory,” Teagan said, shrugging as the others looked at him. “What? He’s been there. We’re not giving away state secrets or anything.”

  “That is true,” Arwin said softly. “But there seems to be more people within our territories than this one,” Arwin said cautiously.

  “Actually, I think the population’s around the same,” Rhodes added. “I’m just going around any of the water cities. You’ve probably heard of the floating cities, but we’re not going near them. Much like when we went through the Earth territory, there were large swathes of land without anyone living there. Same with the Fire territory. Everyone really just congregates in cities and towns rather than out in the open.”

  “It’s sometimes like that in the human realm though, too,” I added. Everyone looked at me, and I just sighed. “There needs to be places for farming and nature. And the animals need to have places to live, as well. We’re constantly pushing them out of their territories, and each city deals with that in their own way. Different wildlife can come into people’s homes and towns and are either killed or end up hurting others because they don’t know any better. Because it was their territory first.”

  “It was like that here a long time ago, too. Longer than any of us have been alive,” Easton said, looking directly at me. “A lot of the wildlife you see here used to be the way we are, all spread out. Mostly because we don’t have as many children as the human realm does. Our lifelines are a little bit longer, so it takes us longer to make decisions, or to do anything for the future like have children and honestly, grow up. But there are many creatures that most have forgotten, those that live directly under the surface or are hidden away.”

  “And they’re coming out,” Rhodes added. I looked between the two men. They looked at each other as well, giving one another a look that I didn’t quite understand.

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  “Easton’s right,” Rhodes said. Everyone looked a little surprised that he’d said those words, but he continued. “Some creatures have been dormant for a long time. Ones full of magic that needed to be where they were. They used to rule these lands, long before the Wielders came.”

  “Once, they were all just mysteries or legends, but now they’re back. We saw one in the Spirit territory.”

  At Easton’s words, Rhodes’ eyes widened. “What did you see?”

  “A Domovoi,” Easton answered.

  “Holy hell.” Rhodes shook his head. “If we don’t reclaim the magic for those crystals so it can go back into the Wielders, there will be more. Far more than just Domovoi or whatever else we might see in these lands.”

  “And how do we do that?” I asked, shaking my head. “Because I’m part of the steps. I know that much. I can’t be all of them, but I need to figure it out.”

  “We will,” Easton and Rhodes said at the same time and then glared at each other.

  Before I could say anything else, Rhodes stood up quickly, his hands outstretched.

  “Dear God,” he whispered. We were all standing by him in an instant, wondering what he was talking about. And then I saw it.

  I remembered when Easton had told me about the sea creatures. About what we could see in the distance and the far more dangerous things that you couldn’t see at all. Because the things that lurked in the deep didn’t warn you when they came for you. They just came. Attacked.

  “Hold on to something and use your Wielding. We’re going down,” Rhodes shouted. There wasn’t a single sound. It was as if we were in a vacuum, just a pin-prick of sensation, and silence.

  And then it was upon us.

  Large tentacles wrapped around the ship, and a loud crack sounded as the bow of the vessel broke, splitting the thing in two. The sound was deafening. And it echoed in the silence. I knew that if I survived this, I would likely remember it until the end of my days.

  Everybody moved quickly, using their Wielding to try and combat the tentacles. Easton had his Fire and Earth rumbling the ship even as he tried to burn the tentacles. Arwin, Wyn, and Teagan worked as one, trying to get one side of the creature, but it wasn’t going to be enough.

  Rhodes tried to move us past it, using the water to pull the Kraken down while using Air to push us out. I tried to help, using my own Wielding. But it wasn’t enough.

  And then Easton grabbed me, pulling me close as he shouted, “Let the ship fall but come close. We’ll try to get ourselves out.” Rhodes was on my other side then, and then the others joined us. Each of us touched each other as if we knew we could find our way out if we just stayed together.

  I hoped we would be able to find our way out.

  Water started to pool around our feet, slowly coming up to our knees. Then my hips. I looked into the dark eyes of the boy holding me and tried to use my Wielding to press out. Maybe I could use my Air Wielding to create a bubble. To make something so we didn’t drown.

  Rhodes seemed to know what I was thinking and tried to do the same. He used his Water Wielding to press around us, as well.

  And then we went under. All of us holding on to each other but not screaming. There wasn’t enough oxygen to yell.

  The Kraken was like a thing of nightmares, its large tentacles wrapping around the ship, pulling it down, tugging us down with it.

  Light glinted off sharp teeth, and I didn’t know where exactly its head was or how it worked. I had only seen drawings of what humans thought it might look like.

  Each of us held onto each other and screamed, all of us using our Wieldings except for Fire. Fire wouldn’t help here. Even Easton was using his Earth Wielding to shake the seabed far below us to try and push us up, but I didn’t think it was doing any good. I didn’t think anything would work.

  I looked into Easton’s eyes, trying to use my Wielding to protect us, trying to get us back up to the surface as the Kraken pulled us down. And then I heard it.

  A soft echo. A scream made out of silence and death.

  It pulsated around the bubble of Air we had made around ourselves to try and protect us.

  It felt like a thrumming in the ears—heavy and sedated.

  It burned the edges of the bubble around us, and the hair on my arms stood up.

  It was like a soft echo of a waltz, only of death and magic.

  And then I was burning, screaming, and all of us shouted. Before I could blink, there was no water, no Kraken, there was nothing.

  Just death and absence before, once again, there was light. My knees slammed into the ground, and I found myself on top of Easton, all of us coughing up the water that had filled our lungs when the last of the Air Wielding bubble popped.

  I scrambled off him, finding myself on a beach.

  An actual sandy and rocky beach.

  Everybody was there. And nobody looked hurt. Somehow, we had been transported from one end of the Water territory beneath the surface, to where we were now.

  And I had no idea how it had happened.

  “Bone magic,” Rhodes whispered. His whole body started shaking, and I looked up into those silver eyes, wondering what he was talking about.

  “How can there be bone magic?” Easton asked. “There hasn’t been that in centuries. I didn’t even think you could make that anymore.”

  “What is bone magic?”

  “It was the thing that saved us,” Rhodes answered.

  “And it’s going to be the magic that kills us all,” Easton added.

  And then I looked around at where we were and wondered what exactly had just happened. And why the two words bone magic sent shivers deep down into my soul.

  Chapter Twenty-T
hree

  “What is bone magic?” I asked, my voice a little shaky. I cleared my throat and rolled my shoulders back. Tried to act stronger than I was. Because those words that they had said? They scared me deep down to my soul. And I didn’t even know what their true meaning was yet.

  “It’s…it’s something that’s not supposed to exist,” Easton mumbled under his breath, not looking at me.

  I searched the strong lines of his profile, trying to figure out exactly what he was thinking. But that was the problem with Easton, I never knew what he was thinking.

  Rhodes was the one who moved up to me to answer as the others began drying off their clothes, looking around for what might come at us next.

  “Bone magic takes sacrifice, the worst kind you can imagine. It’s what happens when you strip someone of their Wielding after torture or anything that has them near death. It can take thousands upon thousands of sacrifices, stripping Maisons of their Wielding, taking lives. The bones left behind carry magic. Power that is dark. Not because of the bones that remain but because of who put them there.” Rhodes looked at me then, and I stared into those silver eyes, swallowing hard. “It was a type of magic used before the Fall, and why the Spirit Wielders left like they did. Because bone magic is the strongest when the bones of Spirit Wielders are used. Although, all Wielders, no matter their element, can produce bone magic. It just takes the cruelty of another to force it out of them.”

  I hadn’t even realized I was crying until Rhodes reached up and wiped a tear from my cheek.

  “So, is this bone magic old or new?”

  “We don’t know. We can’t know. But if it’s powerful enough to be beneath the sea floor and push us through a portal of some kind like it did? It has to be newer than anything that could have lain there dormant all this time.”

  Easton looked at me then, and the anger I saw in his eyes made me take a step back. “It’s not like what Lore did with the crystal and the Obscurité Kingdom. He stripped the power from others through the crystal and funneled it into himself to enhance his own Wielding. This is nothing like that. It’s worse.”