by Dan Neil
“What happened?” Matalo demanded. “Vonn! What the fuck happened? What is all that?!”
Tears formed in Vonn’s eyes. “They’re all dead,” he said slowly, quietly. “They killed them—all of them except me. He made me wear this.”
“Who?” Scipion asked as he offered water to his scout. Vonn wordlessly accepted and emptied the pouch within seconds.
“Anton Day,” the scout explained. “We were captured by Anton Day.”
Lady Anasia paled. “He’s this close?”
“How did you escape?”
“I didn’t,” Vonn admitted as he removed the necklace and earpieces and threw them on the ground. “He told me to tell you he’s coming for you—for Jomar.”
Lady Anasia looked at Matalo with a furious expression. “Jomar Day? That—was that you?”
“Yes, it was,” Matalo interrupted, addressing his scout. “I’m sorry, Vonn. How did they capture you?”
“They knew to look for us.” The scout stared at the ground. “They know we’re coming for them after what we did to their brother, and they were looking for us. They tortured me, but I wouldn’t talk. So they wounded me and sent me off. I wouldn’t be surprised if they followed me here.”
“I hope not,” Scipion added. “We need to move. None of us are safe here.”
Lady Anasia’s eyes burned with anger. “When were you going to tell me you killed one of the Day brothers?”
“I did not think it relevant,” the Scorpion Knight said.
“Relevant,” she replied coldly. “If I knew you’d pissed them off, I would never have allowed you to stay here and draw their attention to us.”
Matalo, his expression panicked, said, “Forgive me, my lady, but now, if their attention is drawn, we need each other. There could be a large force in the area that might be sympathetic—”
“Could be a large force—might be sympathetic?” Lady Anasia’s eyes narrowed. “I hear many possibilities, meaning that you have little information. In my experience, that kills men—and everyone around them. If they are coming for us, we are all dead—even as we speak now.”
Matalo protested, “Maybe not! We can stand up to them. I doubt the Day brothers have met; so, their forces will be weaker. If we work together—”
“Why should I trust you, who led New Dawn to our doorstep?” Lady Anasia was taken aback. “Why should my people—the ones you want to protect—die because of you?”
Scipion jumped in. “We don’t have a choice. We need to act quickly and together if we’re to survive.”
“This had nothing to do with us,” Lady Anasia replied, her posture stiffening. Her eyes narrowed into a harsh glare.
“Yes—but now, it has everything to do with you, whether you like it or not,” he countered bluntly. “New Dawn is coming. We stand a better chance together.”
Lady Anasia threw her arms up and shook her head. “You’ve doomed us all. You realize that, right?”
Vonn was about to speak when an arrow abruptly punctured his eye. He stammered for a moment before crumpling. Zel Xaen drew his sword and positioned himself in front of Lady Anasia as he lowered the mask on his helm. Scipion did not have his sword—but Matalo did, and he drew it. Lady Anasia readied her staff as armored men poured out of the nearby forest; some rode tall, strong horses.
No, no, no—
“Scipion, get everyone ready!” Matalo shouted. “Get the horses; get everything as fast as you can!”
The Scorpion Knight ran for their encampment near Green Creek as New Dawn’s horses descended. He made great haste, hoping to mount Eritar and lead some sort of counter-attack, but his hopes were dashed by the closing sound of hooves and clanking metal. He was quickly outpaced by the enemy horsemen. Before making it halfway to camp, he was surrounded by six swords pointed at him.
Scipion’s eyes wandered as everything unfolded; most of his soldiers were in a similar situation. Hundreds of bandits were flooding into Green Creek, killing anyone who resisted; those who surrendered were dragged to the center of the settlement and forcibly bound and beaten. Scipion’s heart was pounding so loudly that it kept him from focusing on the maelstrom in his mind.
One of the men shouted, “Hands up! Put your hands up unless you want to die right fucking now!”
Scipion grimaced and raised his hands. Most of his soldiers followed suit.
“Do not throw your lives away,” Scipion cautioned. The rest of his soldiers put their arms up, with Denna being last. It was over before it began; they never stood a chance.
Scipion and his fighters were gathered in the middle of the Green Creek Settlement and forced to kneel, surrounded by hundreds of bandits on every side. Scipion was taken and placed next to Matalo, who was next to Lady Anasia.
“Matalo, you should never have come here,” reproached Lady Anasia. She was weary—defeated.
“I’m so sorry,” Matalo told her, eyes wide in disbelief. His lips were trembling, and his skin had turned a sickly green hue.
Scipion stared at the ground in horror. If not for us, New Dawn might have passed right by Green Creek—but we led them here.
Chapter 10
Voices
Day 111 of the Season of Aion, 1020 YAR
Keia’s fingers dug into her blanket, her entire body stiffening. Her mind was a maelstrom of thoughts, all of them rendered hazy by the throbbing pulse in her head. Black spots swirled across her dizzied vision.
Lorinal was standing when her eyes snapped back into focus. The moment her gaze met Keia’s, the familiar hateful spark ignited.
“What am I—what did you do to me, you little freak?” Lorinal shouted, her eyes bulging. She reached for her dagger, but it wasn’t there. The veins on her forehead appeared ready to burst as she screamed, “What the fuck did you do?”
Keia opened her mouth, but no words came out. Spider legs skittered across every inch of her skin. Pulling the covers up to her chest, she babbled in a low, pleading voice, “I—I didn’t do anything.”
Lorinal growled, “Liar! You’re trying to kill me, just like you killed them!”
Keia was taken aback long enough for Lorinal to lunge forward and slam her fist into Keia’s nose. She barely raised her arms to cover her head. The room began to spin as blow after blow rocked her head. The black spots engorged, crowding her vision.
A harsh, wooden slam pierced the veil of darkness. A familiar voice cried out, “What’s going—KEIA!”
Within a moment, she felt Lorinal’s weight lifted from her. Keia rolled about in pain and saw glimpses of Jisaazu pummeling Lorinal when her blurred eyesight allowed. Eventually, Keia heard what sounded like Lorinal scrambling away. Then, her partner’s words rang out, but they felt too far away to matter.
“Can you hear me? Someone needs to call for help! Shite, come on!”
Keia’s eyes closed, and she was falling, weightless. The shadows at the edge of her vision slithered forward with each wheezing breath, plunging her into darkness.
—
Keia snapped awake in a medic bay. She tried to sit up, but a sharp pain in her head pushed her back. She covered her eyes to block out the light. Her vision was still blurry. Rubbing her eyes, she tried to remember what happened. She’d trained with Myrddin after dinner, gone home, gone to sleep, and then Lorinal…
A cold wave ran up her spine.
Lorinal.
An orange spellstone on the wall turned blue. Keia blinked until her eyes were back to normal and then tried to slowly stand. Just as she sat up, a medic walked in.
“Oh, dear, no—lie back down!” The young woman rushed to tend to Keia. “I came as soon as I saw your status change. You woke up earlier than expected.”
Keia groaned and rolled her shoulder to stretch it out. “How long was I out?”
“Just a few hours, dear. No need for concern—you should be
up and walking around in a few more. For now, focus on getting some rest.”
Keia considered this and continued to stand.
The medic put her hands on her hips. “Excuse me—what do you think you’re doing?”
After a yawn, Keia scratched the back of her head. “I’m leaving.”
“What—you can’t just leave! You’re my patient!”
Keia glanced at Ziel on her wrist. She cast a portal beneath herself and fell through as the medic’s protest faded into thin air. Keia emerged at the Fifth Magician’s Division’s training field with a fresh headache.
Something’s wrong.
Lorinal was frantically gesturing as she talked to Oliver and Myrddin. Deione was watching the rest of the division as they performed team drills. No one had noticed Keia’s arrival. She shuffled toward Oliver’s group, her pulse throbbing in her ears.
Lorinal’s voice became clearer, “She lured me into a trap! It’s the only explanation! I just woke up in her room, in the middle of my usual nightm—”
Just then, Lorinal noticed Keia. She pointed and said, “Speaking of Keia, there’s the little witch now.”
Oliver stepped between them and addressed Keia, “Are you not supposed to be recovering somewhere?”
Keia grumbled, “You don’t look like a medic. What’s she doing here?”
Lorinal’s eyebrow shot up. “What am I—I’m telling them about last night, when you tried to kill me! You lured me in my sleep so that your partner could get the jump on me!”
“I’m not trying to kill you!” The words erupted from Keia’s lips. “You entered my house! Into my room! You attacked me!”
Lorinal lunged forward but was caught by Oliver.
“Control yourself!” the captain reprimanded. He shook his head. “This is quite the mess you two have made.”
Lorinal shoved the captain away. “The mess I made? She shouldn’t even be here!”
Oliver sighed. “All I want is to keep the division together. We will work much better together without this violence!”
Lorinal’s eyes were bulging. Clenching her jaw, she said, “So she gets a pass, huh? Just like she’s gotten a pass for everything else—being a shite mage, being a thief, being a murderer—”
Before Keia could shout her reply, Myrddin stepped forward and raised his hand to silence everyone. His face and tone were grave.
“Both of you proclaim your innocence, yet something clearly happened. I will investigate it further—but for now, I need only to know one thing: can you two work together as a part of this division?”
Keia stared at the ground. She was afraid of Lorinal, yes. But maybe if Lorinal knew how awful Keia felt about killing the LeBlancs—how many tortured nights she tossed and turned between fits of crying, blaming herself for everything—maybe if they got to know each other, they could work things out. Maybe, one day in the distant future, Lorinal might even forgive her; it was worth the risk.
Keia was about to open her mouth, but Lorinal, fuming, beat her by half a second.
“No! After everything she’s done, you’re still going to defend her? She belongs in the Lockout, not here! Even if she were innocent, she still doesn’t belong here! Myrddin! Captain Alrick! Is this the kingdom’s justice?”
Myrddin sighed, lowering his head. Oliver turned away.
The wizard said in a low but firm voice, “You’ve forced my hand, then. Regardless of your shared history, I can’t have you endangering your fellow soldiers. Your service to the kingdom is at an end.”
Lorinal’s eyes widened in disbelief. “What?”
He shook his head. “I’m sorry. If you can’t be trusted not to attack a fellow soldier, you can’t be allowed to stay here.”
“You’re—” Lorinal looked to Oliver, then the wizard, “you’re kidding me! She can’t even cast a fucking fireball, and I get kicked to the curb? You can’t fucking do this!”
Myrddin raised his voice, eliciting a jump from Keia. “I can, and I have!” In a softer tone, he continued, “You are not well, Lorinal. Had it not been for Keia’s roommate, you’d likely have killed her. This isn’t you—you’re better than this. And until you realize that, you’re no longer in the King’s Militia.”
Lorinal’s eyes burned with hatred even as they overflowed with tears. She ran to the training field’s exit portal, covering her face as she left.
Keia’s eyes fell to the ground. It was strange to be hated that much by someone. Worse, she couldn’t exactly blame Lorinal. Keia couldn’t imagine reacting much better if she met Remy Crusoe, the man who murdered her parents in cold blood. But that was different—wasn’t it?
“I am sorry you had to hear that,” Captain Alrick said with a grimace on his face. “I was hoping Lorinal would be able to put the past aside, but it was not so.”
Keia shook her head. “It’s—it’s not all her fault; some things aren’t easily forgotten.”
Myrddin said, “Please, tell us what happened.”
Staring at the ground, Keia took a moment to ponder her words carefully. Her voice shrank to a whisper as she said, “I was sleeping when something pulled me awake. I don’t know how to describe it. When I woke, she was just standing there, but it wasn’t her. Her eyes were unfocused. She looked like she was asleep. And then she—spoke.”
The wizard asked, “What did she say?”
Keia’s eyes fell to the ground.
Softer, he asked again, “What did she say, Keia?”
Her fingers curled into shuddering fists. “She said—she said, ‘Why didn’t you save me?’ But she didn’t say it in her voice; she said it in Carter’s.”
Myrddin’s eyes widened, as did Oliver’s.
The wizard spoke first. “Are you positive, Keia? Could it have been some sort of mistake?”
Keia’s temper flared up—how could he question her on this? “I know what I heard!”
Myrddin nodded. “I believe you. I only wish it weren’t true. This is quite distressing.”
“Yeah—you’re telling me.” Keia shifted, drained by a sudden wave of exhaustion. “Myrddin, I—I have to go. Carter needs me. I think he was trying to talk to me.”
She was met with a stern stare.
“You are not to leave Genievon until such time as the completion of your training and your clearance for missions—that is the rule to stay in the King’s Militia. Is that clear?”
A lump blocked the back of Keia’s throat, making her words hard to form. “He’s going to die if I don’t go!”
Myrddin raised his voice again, “Don’t be so naive!”
Stunned, Keia clamped her mouth shut and stared with wide eyes.
He continued, “Your brother did not know any magic like what you describe, and it is unlikely that he learned it on his journey. Whatever made Lorinal speak was not Carter—and they were targeting you.”
Keia hung her head, unsure of how to respond.
Targeting me? Why—why me?
Myrddin got down on one knee and put his hands on her shoulders. “I don’t know if your brother is dead or alive, but I fear the worst. I’m glad you are steadfast in your hope, but clinging to it in the face of the inevitable only ensures more pain when that inevitability is demonstrated. Your place is here—learning with your division and becoming as strong as you can. Not going out there—not getting yourself killed; that’s the last thing Carter would want.”
“So I’m supposed to let the only family I’ve got die?” Keia asked bitterly. Disbelief and grief were like weights inside her ribcage, dragging her down from within. How could Myrddin be this cruel?
The wizard’s stare was dispassionate. “Whatever did this wanted you to ask that question; it was meant to lure you into action. It wants you to go out there, thinking you can save your brother—but you can’t. You aren’t ready; you need more knowledge.”
> Keia stamped her foot and asked, louder, “What knowledge don’t I have that I need?”
“Everything!” Myrddin’s voice rose. “You are to stay in the kingdom; I must speak with someone about this. Please take the rest of the day off—tomorrow, too, if you need it. You tell us when you’re ready to come back.”
Captain Alrick jumped in with a hand raised. “But Myrddin, can we afford to lose that much time?”
The wizard grimaced. “No—we can’t, but there is little choice. Her health is more important.”
Keia held her head in her hands. Her brain was twisting itself into a knot. She registered Myrddin’s voice through the haze fogging her mind.
“Keia? Keia?”
Uncovering her face, she turned toward the wizard. “Huh?”
“What would you like to do?” he asked.
She frowned. Time is short, he always says.
“I’d like to stay.”
With pitying eyes, Oliver shook his head. “You may come back tomorrow at the soonest. You need to at least take the rest of the day off.”
She sighed reluctantly. “Fine.”
Myrddin stepped forward. “I’ll escort her home; I have business to attend to, anyway.”
“Thank you.” Oliver turned to Keia. “Please get some rest. I will see you tomorrow, if you feel up to it.”
She smiled weakly and followed Myrddin through a portal. They arrived in front of her house.
Myrddin took a deep breath. “I’m sorry if I was harsh back there, Keia.”
Unable to muster up the energy to reply, Keia said nothing.
“Sleep, or if you wish, meditate. But relaxation is a must. Find a way to clear your mind and allow your body to heal.”
Keia frowned, Carter’s voice still reverberating in her memory—that it had come from that psycho made her hair stand on end. I miss Aliya.
She sighed before replying, “I think I’ll just sleep.”
—
As he sat in the Middle Magic Chamber, Gaheris pored over all his information on the traitorous communications to the north. A black bowl filled with bubbling green liquid trembled next to the papers on his desk.
