The woman led Keriya to the basin. Fletcher started after her, but Maxton stopped him.
“You’ll want to stay back,” he warned. “Follow me.”
He showed Fletcher and Roxanne to a staircase sculpted into the curved wall, and they ascended to a balcony that wrapped around the room. Empress Aldelphia was already there, standing across from them, blindly watching the proceedings.
A dark-skinned man in red robes appeared and made his way toward Keriya. He offered her a golden chalice.
“Drink of the alderevas and be one with your power,” he intoned, encouraging Keriya to take the cup. She sniffed at its contents and pulled a face. “In the name of our holy Guardians, Valaan the Pure, Zumarra the Merciful, Naero the Brave, and Shivnath the Mighty, we awaken the Vale Room and invoke its power.”
Keriya reluctantly sipped the contents of the chalice. The man retrieved the cup and the scroll and pointed to the water.
“Step into the spring.”
She stared dubiously at the liquid. “How deep is it?”
“Not deep,” the woman assured her, helping her over the rocks and into the basin. “I will be nearby, should healing be necessary.”
“Healing?” Fletcher asked, rounding on Maxton. “What are they doing to her? Is it dangerous?”
“Very,” said Maxton, his lean face creased with worry.
When the woman and the man had retreated to the safety of the balcony, the empress raised her hands. A deep rumble grated against Fletcher’s ears, and he looked up to see that the ceiling had split down the middle. The two hemispheres were rotating open, revealing the cloudless sky. Night had fallen and the star-speckled heavens stretched above. The crescent Oldmoon flooded the torchlit chamber with cold light.
“Let the summoning begin,” the empress declared.
All eyes turned to Keriya, who huddled in the water.
“You want me to just . . . call the dragon?”
“Yes,” Aldelphia said simply. “Maxton, do you have any advice?”
“You must focus your intent.” Maxton’s voice was steady, but his knuckles went white as he gripped the balcony’s carved balustrade. “Wielding prowess stems from mental strength. You must want the dragon to come to you as much as you want to breathe.”
Fletcher wondered exactly how dangerous this procedure was, and how dangerous the dragon would be once it arrived.
Keriya cleared her throat and tilted her head to stare at the stars. “Dragon,” she said loudly, “by order of, uh . . . of me, I guess, and of the Allentrian Empire, I—”
“You must speak in the draconic language.” Rikoru, who had emerged from somewhere behind Fletcher, interrupted her. The old man shuffled forward, leaning over the railing to shake a disapproving finger at Keriya. “Did you not read the scroll?”
“No matter what you think Shivnath may have wanted, only a dragon can save us,” said the empress.
“Don’t be afraid,” the opal-skinned woman added. “This chamber is strong. Use your magic.”
Keriya looked down and mumbled something incoherent.
“Speak up, girl,” said Rikoru, adjusting his glasses as if he thought that might help him hear.
“I don’t have any magic!” Keriya’s scream echoed in the chamber, rebounding over and over.
“Not of my own, anyway.” Her voice was softer now, but in the silence that had descended, every word was clear as a bell. “I was born like this, crippled. Shivnath gave me magic to fight Necrovar, but . . . I don’t think I have the power to summon the dragon.”
“Your eyes prove otherwise,” said Aldelphia.
“Bind her with the reliquary chains and she’ll sing a different tune,” said Rikoru.
“Empress, you can’t—” Maxton began, but Aldelphia had already raised one slender hand. In response, two metallic chains whipped up from the depths of the spring, each tipped with a silver-white manacle. The manacles clamped around Keriya’s wrists, locking her in place.
“Let me go,” she said, struggling against the chains. “You’re hurting me!”
“You’re feeling the effects of the platinum catalyst,” said the empress. “The manacles are reliquaries that draw out your magic, as a lodestone might draw iron filings. It will only hurt if you fight it.”
“I don’t—have—magic!” Keriya grated through clenched teeth. She sank to her knees in the spring, clutching at her chest.
“Stop it,” Fletcher yelled as Keriya’s face went sheet-white. “She’s telling the truth!”
The manacles remained locked around Keriya’s wrists. She groaned, doubling over. Light shimmered in the air around her. Bright flashes winked in and out of existence like sunlight playing across the surface of a stormy sea.
This was the sort of behavior Fletcher expected of the cruel Aerian Elders—the fact that he was still dealing with it here in Allentria, a land that had shown such beauty and promise, made his blood boil.
His heart leaping in his throat, Fletcher started to run, meaning to go to the empress and use whatever force necessary to stop her from hurting Keriya.
Maxton grabbed his arm, stopping him. “Do not interfere,” the prince hissed.
“Enough, Empress.” Shockingly, this came from Rikoru. He was shaking his head. “If it hasn’t worked by now, something is wrong.”
Aldelphia lowered her hand. The manacles sprang open with a soft clink and the chains retracted. Keriya let out a shuddering cry and slouched forward in relief.
The empress bowed her head. “We should not have acted so rashly. It has been ten ages since the last rheenar lived, so we have no way of knowing if the Vale Room is safe for their kind. I’m sorry, Keriya.”
Fletcher stifled a disbelieving laugh. Did Aldelphia think that was an adequate apology? It was obvious the procedure wasn’t safe the moment those chains had touched Keriya.
The scaled woman descended to ground level and gently pulled Keriya from the spring. She waved a hand over Keriya’s chest, and with each pass a little more color returned to Keriya’s cheeks.
“I’ve never seen such a phenomenon before,” said the woman, casting a meaningful look at Aldelphia.
“Now what do we do?” said Rikoru, irritable and snappish again. “The dragon is our only hope, but our only hope of summoning the dragon has failed.” He gestured disparagingly at Keriya.
“All is not lost,” said Maxton. The tension had left his voice and his body. “What if Keriya were to go in search of the dragon? I would accompany her and teach her everything I know about the rheenarae. With my knowledge and her power, we could find it.”
“That is a time-consuming plan that does not guarantee results,” said Rikoru.
“It’s our best option,” Maxton argued. “And currently, it’s our only one.”
The empress lifted her chin. “Prince Maxton, if you believe it can be done—”
“I do.”
“—then it shall be done. You will be outfitted with the fastest horses from the Imperial stables. A retinue of my finest personal guards will accompany you, as many mages as I can spare.”
“Empress, I believe it best to keep the search party small,” he said. “At the risk of overstepping my place, you don’t know who you can trust. If the last few years have taught us anything, it’s that there are leaks in your government. Despite your best efforts, the Shadow continues to gain strength and followers. To invite others is to risk inviting the eyes and ears of Necrovar.”
“King Windscoure would not approve of you traveling unprotected,” said Aldelphia. “You are his sole remaining heir.”
“My father hasn’t approved of anything I’ve done since I was sixteen,” Maxton replied in a dry voice. “And with respect, Your Majesty, the fate of your empire rides on that dragon. I can think of no better way for me to serve Allentria than to find it. My studies have made me un
iquely suited for this task. Let me help.”
The empress inclined her head. “Take at least one more able-bodied fighter with you for safety, a Tier Seven wielder or higher.”
“I am too old for such a journey,” said Rikoru.
“I’m afraid my duties to the church come first,” said the dark-skinned man.
“What about us?” Fletcher asked, indicating himself and Roxanne. If these people thought they were going to send Keriya on a dangerous quest with a bunch of strangers, they were dead wrong.
Aldelphia gave him an appraising look. “What can you offer?”
Fletcher pursed his lips. What could he offer? Did he think he could keep Keriya safe? He, whose magic was so weak it might as well be nonexistent?
“I can fight,” said Roxanne. Her expression was unreadable as she faced the empress. “And I’m good at it. Growing up, I had the most powerful magic out of everyone I knew. I taught myself the basics of being a Hunter, so I can track and forage and cover my traces. And as a Hunter, I’m sworn to protect those who need my services.”
The empress gave her a business-like nod. “You will serve as an additional guard. What of you, Master Earengale?”
“I’m not sure,” Fletcher admitted, realizing he might have dug himself into a hole he couldn’t escape. “I don’t have powerful magic. I can’t speak to dragons and I can’t fight.”
He looked at Keriya again. She was silent, but her eyes, red-violet pools of fear, spoke volumes.
“I just know that I have to go.” He wouldn’t abandon or betray her like Asher had betrayed him. Keriya was his last, his only remaining family. He didn’t know how he could help on a journey such as this, but he couldn’t let her face whatever lay before her alone.
The world on this side of Shivnath’s Mountains was shaping up to be as dangerous as Aeria had been, albeit in different ways. But they’d be okay if they stuck together. He believed that.
The empress seemed to be sizing him up. It felt like she was staring through Fletcher, passing judgement on his soul.
“It is decided,” Aldelphia said at last. “The four of you will depart tomorrow at dawn.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“To be different is a marker of greatness; but if you do not embrace it, you will be neither different nor great.”
~ Ghokarian Equilumos, Second Age
The Aerians returned to the throne room to prepare for their departure. Empress Aldelphia provided them with satchels of supplies. Since none of them had identification papers, she also gave them signed, sealed letters. These letters were proof of their employment with the Imperial government, and would be enough to get them out of any legal trouble they might find themselves in.
Aldelphia delivered more speeches about Necrovar, but Keriya couldn’t pay attention. Her mind was buzzing and her stomach was a tangled knot. Shivnath had told her not to trust anyone, and she hadn’t listened. She’d been roped into doing the exact opposite of what the dragon god wanted.
Keriya dabbled with the idea of refusing the empress’s demands. Then, with a chill in her heart and a hitch in her breath, she remembered the threat of war, the promise that she would lose against Necrovar without the dragon, and the icy burn of the metal chains.
She caught her reflection in one of the stained glass windows. Her eyes, two splotches of garish color in her otherwise achromatic appearance, glinted back at her.
“Why did Shivnath choose you?” she whispered as the empress and Prince Maxton talked over her head.
Her reflection offered no answers.
Aldelphia instructed Tevyn to escort them to their chambers. He brought them to a set of spacious guest rooms in the east wing.
“Excuse me, Keriya.”
Keriya turned before she entered her quarters. Maxton stood a little ways down the carpeted hall. He had followed her.
“I was wondering if I might speak with you.”
“What?” she said stupidly.
“I’d like the chance to explain what happened earlier. I know how frightening it must have been.”
Keriya was keen to avoid talking to Fletcher and Roxanne about the day’s events, but she didn’t want to face the prince, either. This was a perfect opportunity to heed Shivnath’s advice. She shouldn’t be alone with someone who’d stood by and allowed the empress to torture her.
“I’ll have you back to your room in a timely fashion,” he added with a pearl-white smile.
She did want an explanation for what had happened in the Vale Room. It also didn’t hurt that Maxton was the most attractive person who had ever paid attention to her.
Keriya glanced at Fletcher and Roxanne. The taller girl swept inside the guest room without a word. Fletcher’s mouth twisted as if he wanted to protest, but he gestured for Keriya to go.
Despite her reservations, Keriya left with Maxton, feeling awkward, dirty, common, and foolish. The prince was wearing a silver-threaded tunic that looked like it was worth more than her life. A diamond amulet hung from his neck, scattering shards of light from the chandeliers.
“How can I help you, Prince Maxton?” she managed.
“Call me Max,” he said. She nodded, though she didn’t think she had the courage to be so informal with him. “First, I’d like to apologize. The empress had no right to do what she did.”
Keriya’s mouth opened slowly, but she could summon no words. Abuse was something she’d grown accustomed to in Aeria. Apologies, on the other hand, had been rarer than dragons.
“You must understand the position we’re in.” He placed a hand on the small of her back to guide her down a side hall. Her cheeks began to burn and her heart fluttered. “Your appearance marks the beginning of a war that has been brewing for the past ten ages.”
“My appearance? I think you mean Necrovar’s return.” She winced, realizing too late how rude she sounded, but Maxton laughed.
“A fair point. Rather, you are the spark that will start the fire. Both the Shadow Lord and Empress Aldelphia need the dragon. You have the power to control it, which puts you in a powerful position.”
Keriya’s face fell. How could Maxton still think she was powerful after the Vale Room debacle?
“I know you may not feel that way, but it’s true,” he said. “I’ve studied the rheenarae for most of my life. I can teach you summoning and command techniques.”
Keriya rolled her eyes. “Look, Prince Maxton—”
“Just Max. Try saying it. It isn’t that difficult to pronounce.”
The blush that had crept across her cheeks spread to her ears and neck. “Well, Max,” she said to her feet, “Shivnath never said anything about finding or summoning or controlling the dragon. She wanted me to save it. That’s why she gave me this power—I must be the one to kill Necrovar.”
Max didn’t respond. When Keriya snuck a glance at him, she saw that he was frowning. “You don’t believe me, do you?”
The prince stopped walking. There was a whisper in the hallway, a sound like soft footsteps, but they were quite alone.
“I do believe you, Keriya,” he told her slowly. “I’m just not sure what to make of it.”
Keriya’s stomach did an odd flip-flop. Max believed her. “Why’s that?”
“The idea that Shivnath would ask you to kill Necrovar is . . .”
“Ridiculous?” she supplied in a dry voice.
“Confusing,” he finished with a small smile. “I’m sure there’s more going on there than you realize.”
“Don’t I know it,” she muttered.
“I think the best course of action is to find the dragon,” Max said as he set off again.
The abrupt shift in the discussion caused a shiver to run through Keriya.“Why?” she asked, following him.
“You claim Shivnath wants you to kill Necrovar. You can’t do that without a dragon.”
“Never explicitly told you not to find the dragon, did she?”
Keriya considered her conversations with Shivnath. The dragon god hadn’t been explicit about anything, whether it was getting to the Fironem, wielding magic, or killing Necrovar.
“I suppose not,” she conceded.
“There now.” Max beamed at her. Looking into his sky-blue eyes, she couldn’t help but smile back. “Doesn’t it feel better to have a plan?”
“Yes.” Perhaps this was all for the best. Before, she’d been floundering blindly without a clue as to how to complete Shivnath’s quest; now she had direction and assistance.
Max stopped again, and Keriya discovered they were standing in front of a familiar door. They’d returned to her room
“Back in a timely fashion, as promised,” he said. “Get some rest. This will be an adventure fit for the storybooks.”
Keriya was sure her cheeks were a flaming shade of red. “Thanks. It was nice talking to you.”
“Good night, Keriya. I’ll return at dawn.”
Keriya eased the door open and entered a common room filled with comfy chaises. Fletcher was nowhere to be seen. Roxanne was gazing through a set of glass doors that led to a balcony, admiring the golden peaks of the cityscape that glittered in the distance.
“Hi,” Keriya said tentatively. “So, about earlier—”
“Look,” Roxanne interrupted, “I don’t know what you’re playing at. I have no idea how you plan to handle this whole summoning-a-dragon business, but that’s not my problem. My job is to fight, and I’ll do it well. Every Hunter has to go on a journey to prove their skill before they earn their name, and this will be mine. So don’t mess it up for me.”
She breezed to one of three doors that led to separate sleeping rooms and slammed it shut behind her. The warm, tingly feeling from Keriya’s time with Max evaporated, leaving a sour emptiness in its place. Keriya scowled after Roxanne as she headed to the second door. She yanked it open to find Fletcher was sitting on the edge of the bed, hands folded in his lap, as if he’d been waiting for her.
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