Air

by Rosie Scott

  Uriel's kitchen was small. I doubted he was kept in Mistral long enough to keep anything other than dry goods here because I saw no evidence of him keeping ice in the home. There were a few bottles of unopened wine that sat in a magnificent cabinet made of glass and black metal.

  A double bed with soft blue sheets faced a fireplace, with candles and lanterns on each side sitting atop small stone tables. A couch sat perpendicular to a chair in the far corner of the room, both with furniture covers that matched the bed. A tooth three feet long was mounted on the wall over the couch, and a simple silver plaque beneath it stated: High Star, 131.

  The last objects I noticed in the room were sitting on a table before the couch. Anto's arm blades and Jakan's crossbow and scimitar laid over the stone. We'd been forced to take the weapons from their bodies to load them up on the wagon to Welkin, and I hadn't wanted to ever get rid of them. Uriel had offered to keep them safe for me because I had no home with which to send them to. The Sentinel promised he would get the weapons to me in Chairel once I had somewhere to display them.

  “Forgive me,” Uriel murmured quickly, hurrying through the room to take the weapons from the table. “I had these delivered. I didn't think we'd come here with you, Kai.”

  I shook my head slowly. “Don't apologize. I appreciate you keeping them safe for me. It means a lot.” When I heard the click of a lock in the door behind me, I glanced back to see Cyrus securing it to ensure we were alone.

  “Sit down. Make yourselves comfortable.” Uriel was putting the weapons carefully in a chest at the end of his bed. One light cream arm waved to the couch and chair. “Cyrus and I can sit on the bed. I apologize. I'm not used to having many people here.”

  The Sentinel was apologizing so much that it seemed he thought I would keep what I knew above his head. It saddened me that he felt I was capable of such a thing given our growing relationship. My friends and I sat down on his furniture, leaving the large chair for Maggie. She tested it before she put her full weight in it, looking visibly relieved when it didn't break.

  “That's a large tooth,” Cerin said, pointing above our heads. “You slew this animal, Uriel?”

  The Sentinel nodded as he closed the chest and locked it with a key from his key ring. Cyrus passed him to sit on the edge of the bed. “Cyrus and I did together. It was the battle that got me promoted from a simple soldier. A large metal dragon, it was. In the mines beneath Reva.”

  “That looks too large to have come from a creature of the mines,” I commented.

  “The mines in Eteri get quite massive the farther down you go,” Cyrus spoke up, watching his friend finally sit down on the other side of the bed. “Well, the ones in the north, anyway. Dig anymore downward in Mistral's mines, and you'd break through to Hazarmaveth underground. Reva is just north of the tunnels, and the metal there is vast. The giants requested our support there a year before we reached it. Uriel was extremely helpful. Metal dragons are hard to kill. They can withstand great heat and shoot shards of metal from their throats. It's why his shields came in handy.”

  “Eteri has had problems with dragons,” Azazel commented. The Sentinels had mentioned fighting them before.

  “In the past, yes,” Cyrus admitted. “They are much less common now. The creatures tend to live alone. They rarely breed, so with each one you kill, the less likely it is you'll come across another. I've heard myths and rumors of dragons enslaving the humans of Chairel in the Golden Era. I don't know that I believe it. Not sure how they'd do it. They don't speak, and they don't seem motivated to move around more than they need to.”

  Azazel nodded, finding that interesting.

  “Kai,” Cyrus said, bringing my attention to him. “Cicero showed you more than Glacia.” It was a statement, but it was meant as a question.

  “Yes,” I said, keeping my voice low. “The first time we truly talked with one another I asked if there was dissent among the Sentinels. You made it seem like there was not. I would have never guessed you two were attempting to assassinate the queen.”

  Cerin whipped his head to the side to stare at me, shocked, before looking back to the Sentinels. The room was awkwardly quiet for a moment. Cyrus and Uriel exchanged glances.

  Cyrus finally cleared his throat and met my eyes. “How does that information make you feel, Kai?”

  “I have no love for your queen,” I replied. “But it's not really my place to get involved unless there's something in it for me.”

  “You are requesting compensation for your silence?” The Sentinel asked.

  “No. I'm saying that I claim no power or control over Eteri's politics. I will keep your secrets with me to my grave because you are both my friends. And if you were to ever request my aid, I would weigh both of your opinions very highly.” I hesitated. “Cicero showed me your conversation after defeating manticores south of Makani. We hadn't met yet, but it sounded as if you both were willing to work with me to do this because you know Tilda will pull her support after we take Hammerton. Though Uriel did express hesitation over working with me because of my race.”

  Uriel's eyes widened. “I assure you, I have since reconsidered. I once held judgments of the gods, the Alderi...” he trailed off, but I knew he thought of the Celds and his conversations with Anto.

  “I believe you,” I told him. Both Sentinels were quiet a moment, so I went on to ask, “Is your purpose to get into power? To get Altan into power? Why are you doing this?”

  “I have no desire to be king,” Cyrus murmured. “I love this land, Kai. I love its people. Tilda has mistreated the privilege of leading this country for over eight hundred years. It's like the woman refuses to die. When I grew up as a child a few centuries ago in Scirocco, my parents told me stories about how her predecessor was a great leader. Eteri continued to bicker with Chairel, but we'd had trade agreements with them. Our relationship was starting to mend. Eteri's fights used to be justifiable. Tilda throws her people at wars and situations like they are a renewable resource. And they are, really, but the fact that she treats us this way does not rest well with me.”

  I nodded. “I understand.”

  “Naolin is dead,” Uriel said, “and she gave her life to defend Esen. She will get nothing. If her body is eventually found, it will be brought here to be buried. Nothing more. You saw the way Tilda spoke to us about it today. There was no compassion for one of her best fighters.”

  “You two have clearly been on the same page with this for a while,” Cerin commented. “Who else knows?”

  “About the attempts to root her out?” Cyrus clarified. “No one. It's always been kept between Uriel and I. We have our suspicions over which Sentinels would be happier if she were gone.”

  “Who?” I prodded.

  “Altan, Zephyr, and Naolin,” he replied. “Except, of course, Naolin is dead. And I'm only saying they would be happier with someone else in power. I don't know that they would agree with us on how that should happen.”

  “So Bhaskar and Kirek would not join you,” I deduced.

  “Bhaskar doesn't care one way or the other,” Uriel commented. “And Kirek? Hell no. She would defend Tilda against each and every one of us if she had to.”

  “You need to ensure that you both offer up excellent picks for the potential new Sentinels,” I commented. “You have the ability to add more to your cause before it even becomes apparent.”

  Cyrus nodded. His brow furrowed, and he watched me carefully. “Cicero showed you my memory to cause even more chaos than we can handle right now. His powers may be useful, but I'd guarantee the memories he offered to you are cherry-picked to offer him the most benefit. I don't trust him, Kai.”

  “Me either,” I admitted. “Cicero claims to like me, and that might be true. He was honest with me today. But he is the god of chaos. He is aiding us only because it suits him. Right now, Chairel has the advantage over us despite our victory at Narangar. To cause the most chaos to benefit himself, he needs to aid me. The moment I start gaining an advantage,
it's possible he'll turn. And I want him as far away from us as possible when that happens.”

  “Don't forget,” Azazel spoke up, “chaos does not only revolve around war and battle. It's possible that the memories he gave to you of Glacia are incorrect. We could arrive there to find it looking much different than you've seen.”

  I held up one finger. “That is true, which means we need to go into this as prepared as we can be without the knowledge he gave me. If we put all of our cards on the memories being correct and they're a lie, everything could unravel. At the same time, though, I'm hoping the intel is solid. Cicero's information has all turned out to be right so far. If we succeed in Glacia, that will surely benefit him.”

  Uriel observed Cyrus hesitantly for a moment. Finally, the healer spoke. “Do you want to try using Cicero's powers on the other Sentinels to find their allegiances? It might be dangerous, but we would know for sure.”

  “Would we?” Cyrus asked rhetorically. “Cicero has my memories. As was proven today, he already has the knowledge to get us both killed for our actions. Allowing him to take memories from the others means putting them in danger, Uriel. I want to remain as open and honest as we can with our methods of testing the others.”

  Uriel sighed. “Yes, but there's a reason why we haven't asked Altan to join us for all these years.”

  “Why's that?” Cerin questioned.

  Cyrus flicked his blue eyes up to the necromancer. “Altan doesn't care for the queen, but as I've told you all before, he is extremely honorable. He doesn't like underhanded tactics. I doubt he would ever agree to an assassination. On top of everything, who would be the first to be suspected in the event of Tilda's untimely death? Altan is first in line to take her place. Would he agree to be part of a plan when he knows he'd be the prime suspect?” Cyrus shrugged.

  “You were taking out hits on her before we were even in Eteri,” I pointed out.

  Uriel nodded. “Yes, because we figured that if Altan truly knew nothing of the plan, he wouldn't be easily blamed since he'd have nothing to hide. We've always thought the blame would come back to Cyrus since he is second in line, but if Altan was king, there's a chance he'd let the assassination slide since it was already done and a benefit to him.”

  “And he likes you,” Azazel pointed out, watching Cyrus.

  Cyrus dipped his head in acknowledgment. “Altan and I work well together. We were good friends back when we were soldiers, and we were promoted at the same time. Wars and duties have pulled us various ways over the years. I'd like to think that even if he didn't agree with our plan, he would stay quiet about it. Then again, this is all speculation. I would truly have no idea unless we were to use Cicero. But I'm not willing to do that to Altan.”

  “Then we won't,” Uriel replied. “We have a while to try to figure him out.”

  Cyrus exhaled heavily through flared nostrils. “I'd like to wait until we are in Hammerton to attempt another hit, anyway. Perhaps we'll wait to tell him until then. We know Altan will be with us. So will Kirek. The two of them are our best offensive generals.”

  Uriel scoffed. “Yes, and if Kirek is with us, that will complicate everything.”

  “We'll cross that bridge when we come to it.” Cyrus looked up at me. “Can the Alderi plant false evidence on a kill, by any chance?”

  “I...don't know. I've never hired them myself, and Nyx isn't here to ask.” I glanced over at Azazel. “Do you know?”

  “I'm sure it's not outside the realm of possibility,” the archer replied. “If you pay them enough, they'll do anything. I remember hearing assassins gossiping about pulling off kills that looked like accidents or suicides.”

  I watched Cyrus carefully. “You're not thinking about framing someone, I hope?”

  The second Sentinel stared right back. “Perhaps your father?”

  I raised one eyebrow before chuckling dryly. “Sirius, you mean. Calling him father makes me feel ill.” I hesitated. “I normally hate such shady activities, but I can't bring myself to be opposed to causing him more trouble.”

  “Keep in mind that the underground is allied with Kai,” Uriel pointed out. “If we frame Sirius, people may ask questions about how Chairel was able to hire an assassin while the two are enemies.”

  “The people will not ask many questions at all,” Cyrus replied. “They know little about the politics of the underground because it is foreign to them. And who knows? Maybe a few assassins left the underground because they didn't agree with the takeover. Maybe Chairel hired assassins which weren't Alderi. It's possible. Besides, Sirius has reasons to want Tilda dead. He's hired assassins many times before. Framing him gives Eteri a valid reason to keep our alliance with Kai until Chairel is taken.”

  “As if you need a valid reason to keep an alliance,” Cerin huffed.

  “Right,” Cyrus agreed.

  “We have time to think this through,” Uriel pointed out. “We won't be seeing Hammerton for a while yet. We shouldn't let Cicero's meddling distract us. For now, the plan is Glacia. Do you think we should request Tilda send messengers pulling Altan and Zephyr from Makani?”

  Cyrus thought for a moment. “I think one of them should come with us to Scirocco. We'll fill out the ships there with our men and leave for Glacia as soon as possible. It'll take us about a moon just to reach Makani from Scirocco. Then the other Sentinel can join us there and further add to our navy with those ships. It'll give the soldiers further time to repair the city.”

  Uriel nodded in agreement. “All right then, the plan is set. We'll get either Altan and Zephyr to meet us in Scirocco to take the warships Kirek left for us.”

  “Speaking of warships,” I began, “we need to ensure Tilda has started working with the wildlands so Eteri can replace the ships we've lost.”

  “She has,” Azazel spoke up. “I heard some of the people talking in the city today about it. Instead of sending people to Tal, Tilda decided to task Scirocco with building ships. She's letting the beastmen and mercenaries trade with the city from Silvi, but so far, she hasn't agreed with letting them stay in Eteri as permanent citizens.”

  Uriel jabbed a thumb in Azazel's direction as he watched the other Sentinel. “And he learned all of this from overhearing.”

  Cyrus smiled. “Sure did. You all are helpful to have around.” His blue eyes passed over each of the Renegades. “Can each of you promise that everything regarding the plan—” he moved his finger between himself and Uriel “—will stay in confidence between us?”

  “Absolutely,” I agreed. Cerin and Azazel also affirmed, but Maggie held up a finger.

  “While I would say yes,” the engineer began, “I'd like to know if I could just take care of it. Walk right in there with my hammer all sassy like, and see if I can get her body to splash into the ocean from over the cliffs with one really good swing.”

  We were all silent a moment before Cyrus busted into laughter. “And here I thought you had a serious objection,” the Sentinel commented.

  “I'm very serious, love,” Maggie replied, even though she smiled.

  “And how would you explain this to the guards?” Cerin retorted in jest. “If her body's floating in the ocean, the glass of the top floor is broken, and you're standing there with your war hammer, that's kind of obvious, no?”

  Maggie chuckled. “Strong winds, maybe?”

  I covered half my face with a hand, smiling at the terrible plan. “Leave the planning to us, Maggie.”

  Thirty-eight

  Our last day in Mistral was a beautiful one. The morning sun cast shimmering golden beams over the grasslands in wide arcs beneath a blooming light blue sky, making it appear as if we were in the midst of High Star. In reality, the weather was brisk, and the long grasses held the extra sheen of frost. The night before, snow flurries had fallen over the capital city, and some of them had stuck to the cold stone of the buildings over the highlands. All of them were melted now with the direct sunlight as if the weather of Eteri was in a perpetual war with itself.r />
  Ten thousand Eteri soldiers were gathered just east of Mistral's lake on the plains beside the Ternion Trail. Fatigued chatter murmured through the crowds as the men and women waited for further orders. Two griffon messengers tended to their mounts at the lakeside, letting the beasts have free rein to snatch whole fish out of the calm and frigid waters.

  Our army would be meeting up with Zephyr on our way south to Scirocco, where we would be taking the warships Kirek had used for her defense of T'ahal. The ships there were fully functional and needed no repairs. Our full navy would then sail around the long peninsula which kept Scirocco from view of the open ocean to head north along the country's eastern coast. Once we reached Makani, we would join up with Altan and an additional five thousand soldiers on the repaired warships there before continuing to Glacia.

  We would be leaving soldiers in each coastal city to defend them even though we expected no problems from Chairel now that their navies were heavily wounded. Each city also knew to pull its people back from the shores when it came time for our arrival in Glacia. It was impossible to know just how severely the continent's destruction would affect the landscape of the rest of Arrayis.

  Our journey would be long, and I would be spending a lot of that time teaching alteration magic to the soldiers with us. When it came time to battle with the Icilic while on the seas, we needed to rely on both life and alteration magic to keep our mages safe. Thanks to the Battle of Highland Pass, we knew the snow elves loved their ranged weapons. If they ever decided to stop using their magic against the alteration shields which only recycled their energies, we could also rely on the life shield protections to avoid many of their arrows. Of course, the Icilic now had access to a number of our ships. We anticipated having to fight against the shielding systems that Eteri had only used for its benefit in the past.

  The upcoming battle was monumentally crucial for all sides involved. The Sentinels and Renegades would be fighting to prevent the continued invasion of Eteri, and the Icilic would be desperate to protect their land while trying to maintain their hold on the parts of Eteri they'd gained. Both sides had so much to lose. No matter who won this battle, the near extermination of an entire people was likely to occur. The Icilic would show the Vhiri no mercy if we failed in our quest to stop their invasion.