The Traitor of Tyiku
Page 16
"So, you can...?"
Summere nodded. "Like I told Roan, just because I've got powers doesn't mean I always need to use them."
"What kind of magic is that? Health magic?"
"It's magic from the Divine. For now, I am a mortal, but I still am given attributes of a goddess."
Jaklyn nodded, breathing in the air. It smelled like rain, fall, and death.
"Should we go back to camp?" she asked.
Summere shook her head. "More will come."
"Should I do something? Construct a wall of fire, or ice?"
Summere shook her head again. "You don't feel it now, but every action you take uses a lot of energy. It was wonderful of you to put out the fire, but you need to be able to protect yourself later. I can help you stay awake and alert, but I cannot restore your magical energy, and I cannot keep an eye on you for much longer." She summoned over a soldier. "Please move the Tyikians into the clearing in the woods. They will not wake until the battle is over, but it is not fair for them to be in the line of fire when they cannot protect themselves." The man nodded and returned to his fellow men. As a group, they moved the fallen soldiers into safety.
"Summere," Jaklyn asked, "why did Alikos attack you in that memory?"
Summere gave a meek smile and kicked a nearby rock. "Because I'm the daughter of Kahiya, so Malo will try almost anything in his power to make me act against her. He thought that, if he could get me angry enough, I would act against the values of my mother." She shook her head sadly. "It didn't work the way he'd hoped. He did not disrupt my love for Alikos, he did not make me hurt anyone, and it didn't make me cause conflicts with those around me. But he disrupted harmony... my harmony. He made it impossible for me to be happy."
"And Alikos doesn't remember this?"
"No. I cut off contact with Alikos, wiped myself from his memory altogether, because I knew that, for as long as I knew how he was, my love for him would put us both in danger. If he remembered me at all, he'd wonder about me, too, and if that grew too much... Surely you can see how it is. I felt I had no choice." She sighed. "I think it will work out for the better, though. I have insights into the future, after all."
They heard a rustle in the forest. A fawn came to nuzzle Summere, whose tears sparkled with the light that was still emitting from her skin. More animals came out to surround her, each passing by her hand, as if trying to comfort her. She sent them throughout the camp, to the soldiers who had returned, to Jaklyn. From a glance of her mind, Jaklyn knew these animals would protect them just as steadfastly as her soldiers would, and something inside of her told her she should be afraid. The amount of undercover backup Ezra had solicited did not bode well for the otherwise peaceful night.
Across the field, Jaklyn could hear footsteps. They were faint under the rustling of the Sralossen side, but when she nodded to Summere, she knew the blonde heard them too. Silent gestures had the entire group on their feet, and they stood, waiting.
Waiting.
The footsteps grew closer.
Waiting.
In the distance, they could see the outlines of their foes.
Waiting.
CLICKCLICKCLICKCLICKCLICK. The sudden noise resonated off the sides of the world. Summere's mouth dropped open in disbelief, and she shouted "GET DOWN" before throwing herself at the grass.
Everyone followed, most confused. They did not understand what was going on, not as they heard the air above their heads get torn apart by tiny pieces of flying metal. Not until the first animal fell to the ground with a loud, heart-wrenching whimper, never to rise again because of the gash in its chest. They did not understand what was going on until they saw its blood, until they understood it was death.
Jaklyn was the first to react. Although Summere had warned against draining herself, nothing would be accomplished if they waited for metal orbs to break them open.
She reached in to her magic, slowly tugging on her earth magic. She touched the ground, letting her energy weave itself through the networks of grass and soil until she could feel it being beaten down by the boots of Minndi's soldiers. With a push, she made the grass grow into vines, and pushed the vines to grow up the soldier's legs and across their torsos, trapping them. As she did this, the clicking came to a complete stop. Summere glanced up, but Jaklyn stood.
"They're bound. They can't move. It should be safe."
With shuffles and praise, they got up. They moved toward the Tyikian soldiers, some edging around the sides of the field and others crawling across it. They peeked around corners, watching for the second wave of soldiers, wondering where they'd approach from.
The next wave of soldiers came from the sky.
Metal monsters hovered above the scene, swishing through the air like giant bumblebees and dropping balls that exploded as they hit the ground. Soldiers on horseback swooped down and stomped on those on the ground, and people with metal contraptions took aim from the backs of giant birds.
Men fell around Jaklyn, who was running into the trees for partial cover. She hid within the edge of the woods, unsure whether to use her magics for fear of hurting the wrong team.
A woman flew past her on a flying lizard, a sword glinting in the moonlight. She wore turquoise, and the silver breastplate of a Tyikian warrior, but her red hair hinted that it was the empress herself. She swiped at Jaklyn as she passed, only to turn and pursue Summere.
Summere was fighting off a group of soldiers who had come after her. She was distracted, and it was clear that her magic, though it was from the Divine, was not holding up very well; she was holding her own, but barely.
When her attackers noticed the lizard flying at them, they moved, leaving her exposed. She fell to the ground to avoid it, then stood and started running.
The creature was faster. Minndi was pursuing her through crowds of people fighting, oblivious to the booms and crackles of metal exploding on surfaces. Watching, Jaklyn saw a second creature flying toward her, faster still, a glowing speck of fire through the air.
A phoenix.
"Alikos?!" she shouted without thinking. A man grabbed her from behind, clamping a warm hand to her mouth.
"Quiet, Lyn. Don't give away your position."
"Alikos," she whispered.
She felt him put his arms around her, but she didn't know whether it was to calm her or restrain her. Watching the people in the field fall to the ground convinced her it didn't matter, and she leaned against him, fighting her own exhausted tears.
The phoenix caught up to Summere and dropped an object into her hand. A metal tube, connected to a handle and a lever. Summere pushed the lever to release a metal orb at the sky. It flew into the stars.
Her action gave the lizard just enough time to catch up to her. Jaklyn glanced into Minndi's mind, listened to her cackle, and watched as she extended her arm out, took aim, and ran Summere's heart through with her sword.
Summere's light went out. Jaklyn screamed, and Alikos covered her mouth again. She was shaking, and now, her tears fell.
"It's okay Lyn, it will be okay... Just keep quiet."
And then, it was day.
From the sky descended an orb of light, brighter than the sun, illuminating everything and showing exactly how much bloodshed there had been. Corpses were blown to pieces, piles of fallen soldiers and murdered deer laid across the grass. The Tyikians who still held weaponry rounded on Kahiya, who laughed at them, a beautiful, angry laugh that was louder than any of their metal objects.
She froze the world.
Jaklyn could still think, but she couldn't access the minds of anyone else; the force that had frozen everyone in place prevented her from extending her magic.
The goddess could, of course, move around as she desired. She made her way across the battlefield, and the displeasure she showed at the sight of the bodies chilled Jaklyn's core. She walked around, leaving a path of light behind her as she moved, and took a metal object from a Tyikian soldier's hand. She examined it, then moved a few yards in f
ront of the man, and picked something out of the air.
"Bullets," she said. "You brought guns into Tyiku." She walked to the flying lizard Minndi sat on and pulled it by its tail down to her level. "Minndi Casadine Mairuna, daughter of the Emperor Richardo and Empress Casadine, you have violated the laws set in place by the Divine. I allowed you a sanctuary in the other realm, and you could not control your hunger for power. Not only did you refuse to establish a treaty with Sralossa, you went against my wishes for this realm. I gave you due warning not to do this. You disobeyed me.
"I know you are young, Minndi, but treaties with the gods are not things to be foolish about. I also know you believed Deoth could protect you, but this is not his realm. It is mine, and I am backed by the rest of the Divine in matters such as these. You are no longer welcome here, and neither are your toys from your vacation realm." She waved a hand, and every bit of foreign metal melted, whether it was on the ground, in someone's hand, or in the sky. She waved her hand again, and Minndi vanished.
She simply smiled. "Now then. The rest of you will stop fighting, and from here on, the nations of Tyiku and Sralossa will be one. I hereby declare Fiona Phoenix as the empress of both nations. All members of both courts are dismissed, and the new court will be established at her discretion.
"Lastly, Jaklyn Klain and Alikos Phoenix, I would like you both to know that I appreciate your willingness to act on the side of my daughter. I will welcome you will both into the Divine realm if that is your wish when your time in this realm has ended.
"I must go now. My daughter is waiting for me. Let it be known that Summere is now not only an Immortal, but a young Goddess. Please afford her the same amount of respect you afford me.
"Blessed be, people of my realm. May you live in harmony once again."
Epilogue
Jaklyn sat on a bench in the royal garden, doing her best not to wrinkle the new dress that had cost far too much gold to buy. Fiona insisted it wasn't a problem at all, and Jaklyn couldn't help but wonder whether Fiona viewed her as a doll to dress up on a whim.
Jaklyn could not deny that she missed the clothing she'd grown up in, with its lightweight fabrics and practical designs. She had been debating whether to ask Alikos or Fiona to buy her some (after all, they were much cheaper than the gowns they insisted on buying her), but whenever she alluded to the impracticality of the gowns, they mentioned how much lovelier she looked in them than in breeches. It wasn't her place to argue; her house in the slums had blown away, and her father had not been heard from since. She had nowhere else to go.
Alikos sat next to her, pushing the pale blue fabric out of the way with a smile. "Lyn, I'd like to talk to you. Will you take a walk with me?" he asked, standing up once more to grab one white-gloved hand. She considered peeking into his mind but restrained herself. She was getting better at communicating like a normal human being these days.
"How are your magics coming along?"
"They're coming as they will," she said, and bit her lip. "I'm going to get them drained," she admitted. "All the elementals. I don't want them. I don't need them."
He nodded. "If you are sure that's what you want, then I think it's for the best. Do you know what you plan to do now that the war's over? Have you decided where you want to live?"
"I haven't. I was considering asking Fiona whether I could work in the palace. She seems like she could use an extra hand with everything she's had to take control of."
"Right, right," he said, descending into thought.
They walked under flowering trees. With the season, the flower petals were falling to the ground, and the surrounding leaves were halfway through changing colors. Jaklyn stopped to pluck a flower from the closest plant and held it a few centimeters away from her nose to smell it. "It's beautiful, isn't it? The garden?" She smiled. "I used to want one. One man my sister had relations with had one, and she told me about it one day. She told me that, if I studied hard in school, and was good to the right people, I might get to have one of my own. I suppose this is kind of like having my own, isn't it?" she mused. She looked over at Alikos, who was still eyeing the ground in contemplation. "I'm sorry. I talk too much, don't I?"
"No. Not at all. You're fine. You're magnificent."
She raised her eyebrows. "If you say so."
"I do. Lyn," he told her, "I love you. I've loved you for quite some time."
"No," she shook her head. "Love doesn't work that way. I am dressed up, and you say I'm beautiful, but anyone is beautiful with the right colors and the right face paint."
"Jaklyn Klain, you were beautiful the day I met you. I don't need to see you in the dress to know that."
"You've spent way too much time with Fiona. She's turning you soft."
"I've always been soft. Remember that day at the beach, when I threw mud at you? Remember how I told you I wouldn't let your life be made worse by the trial? Do you know what it was like when you finally let me kiss you?"
"Alikos..."
"Look at me. Please. I want you to trust me. I promise you, I will not make your life worse for it."
"Do you really think people at court will take to it kindly?"
"Fiona approves of you. Kahiya approves of you. Lyn, the only person who doubts whether you are good enough for me is you, and I am asking you to give me time to prove to you that you are."
"Alikos, I love you, but I just don't know if I can trust you," she huffed.
He froze and stared at her for an eternal moment. And then he smiled.
"I am not asking you to trust me. I am asking you to try." With that, he ran his hand along her cheek and brushed her hair out of her face. He leaned toward her, and without a second thought, she brought herself up just enough to meet his lips with hers. She could feel him smile, could feel his arms pulling her closer to him, and couldn't help but break away just enough to giggle.
"I'll try," she said. "I'll try."
And something within her knew that she would one day. Something within her knew that one day, she would give him her heart. One day, she'd be a Phoenix, and she'd rise out of the ashes to begin a new life.
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About the Author
Edeline Wrigh is an eccentric storyteller with a penchant for swearing, drinking too much caffeine, and spending more time with cats than people. She writes fantasy, romance, and love stories without happy endings from her house in the Midwest. When she’s not putting words on paper, she’s busy up-leveling her martial arts game or taking in stories in any way she can.
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Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Epilogue
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About the Author
Copyright © 2020 by Edeline Wrigh.
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be
reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Cover design by MoorBooks Design.
Edeline Wrigh
www.edelinewrites.com