The Moonburner Cycle

by Claire Luana

  “It is not the only way,” Lyra said. She had been noticeably quiet the whole time Master Vita shared his plan.

  “What do you mean?” Azura asked.

  “It is ancient knowledge, but it is possible to give up your burning abilities. To become a normal person.”

  “What?” Azura and Master Vita said at the same time.

  “Do you know how to do it?” Azura asked, excitedly.

  “Yes,” Lyra said, hesitantly. “But think about whether it is what you really want. It is irreversible. Is a normal life with Takeo what you want more than anything in this world?”

  “Yes,” Azura said. “Absolutely.”

  “Then it is settled,” Lyra said. “I will instruct you on the technique when the time comes. Until then…I guess we have to kill you.”

  Azura stood in the courtyard as the koumori swept off the ground, bearing their riders to the west. King Ozora, General Ipan, Takeo, Headmistress Lakota, and two more moonburner guards accompanied Takeo, the wings of their koumori melting into the black of the night sky.

  Azura fought the sense of dread creeping up her spine. She couldn’t help but feel that it was the last time she would ever see Takeo. She shook off the feeling. No. Master Vita’s plan would work. It would be time for her to take the tonic soon.

  Azura turned to leave and saw Airi standing at the far side of the courtyard, arms wrapped around her small body. She stood alone. Her face flickered with something that looked like regret.

  “It almost looks like she’s sorry,” Lyra remarked softly.

  “She better be,” Azura replied. She wanted to stalk over to her sister and scream at her until she truly understood what her selfishness had caused.

  “Do you remember when you and Airi were kids, and you broke that porcelain heron statue that your mother loved?” Lyra asked.

  “How could I forget? I don’t think I ever saw mother that furious.” Azura still remembered cowering against a wall as her mother shouted at the sisters. “Until yesterday, that is.”

  “Do you remember that your mother blamed Airi?” Lyra asked.

  “What? She yelled at both of us.”

  “Not exactly,” Lyra said. “You confessed, but she didn’t believe you. She thought you were covering for Airi, so she punished both of you.”

  Azura sifted through the memory, trying to recall. “I guess,” she said. “What’s your point?”

  “Things have always been harder for Airi. It’s not an excuse for her behavior…but maybe…maybe it makes it more understandable. You might never see her again. Perhaps before you leave…you should tell her you forgive her. Be the bigger woman.”

  Azura grimaced. Should she try to make peace with her sister? Would Airi welcome her overture or spit in the face of her efforts? Azura shook her head. The gap between them was already too wide to bridge. “It’s too late for that,” she said. “She said she hates me. Besides, I’m leaving. That’s probably the biggest kindness I can do for her. “

  “Your choice,” Lyra said softly.

  “Let’s go,” Azura said, turning her back on her sister’s lonely figure.

  Azura made her way back to her room, the bottle of precious tonic clutched in her sweaty hand and hidden inside the pocket of her dress. They had agreed that she would take it right before lunch. Master Vita would come to find why she had missed their arranged “lesson” and discover her body.

  When she got back to her room, she closed the door behind her and sagged against it. Her heart was racing and her skin was clammy.

  “I’m scared,” she admitted to Lyra. “What if something goes wrong? What if the dose is too strong and I actually die? What if I wake up in the crypt and no one rescues me?”

  “Nothing will go wrong,” Lyra replied. “Master Vita will get this right. He won’t let you die alone in the crypt.”

  Azura blew out a breath, fluttering the strands of hair off her face. “I have to be brave. For Takeo.”

  “For yourself,” Lyra said softly.

  Azura swooped Lyra up in her arms and buried her face in the soft silver fur of her back. “Thank you for not thinking this is madness.”

  “Oh, this is madness,” Lyra said, nuzzling her head in Azura’s neck. “But I know you. You cannot go on any other way.”

  A nervous laugh escaped Azura’s lips as she set Lyra down, taking the clear vial from her pocket. She held it up to the light, examining the innocuous liquid. It gave no hint of its dangerous contents. “Kampai,” she said grimly, tilting the liquid back.

  CHAPTER 17

  Takeo

  It took hours to reach the Tottori. The moonburners had chained Takeo’s hands before him in an awkward position that made his muscles burn as they rode, but at least he could reach the koumori harness handles. He briefly fantasized about taking the reins of his koumori and making a break for it, but he knew that he would be shot out of the sky with moonlight at the first sign of trouble. So instead he thought about Azura. He hadn’t been able to say goodbye. He knew he had done what was best for her, but the look of betrayal on her face when he confessed filled him with a sorrow blacker than he had ever known.

  The only thing worse than his ache over Azura was the fact that he had to leave Bako behind. His seishen couldn’t travel by air, and the queen had thrown a fit when the king suggested they travel over ground to allow Takeo and Bako to remain together. The debate had brought the two monarchs to the brink of war once again, as the thought of separating a man from his seishen in the last few days of his life was too much for Ozora.

  Takeo had finally relented and agreed to be parted from Bako, though every fiber of his body rebelled against the notion. As he turned to say goodbye, the words felt like ash in his mouth—there was nothing he could say to convey how much Bako’s solid presence as a friend and companion had meant to him. Bako was a piece of him. And so he had simply pressed his forehead to Bako’s own, and fought back tears.

  When the moment was over, Bako had raced out of the citadel gates at full gallop, intent on beating Takeo to the desert.

  When they finally touched down on the cool sand of the Tottori, Takeo’s body ached from its twisted position. When they unshackled him from the koumori harness, he half fell, half stumbled onto the slippery sand. He could feel Bako to the east of him, still distant, but steadily approaching.

  The king walked over as Takeo rubbed his raw wrists. ”Who would have thought when we were boys fighting over the last chicken leg that we would end up here,” Ozora said.

  “You needed the extra meat more than me,” Takeo chuckled. “You were as thin as a fence post.”

  The corner of the king’s mouth turned up in a sad smile. “This can’t be where our story ends, my friend.”

  “It’s not an end,” Takeo said, though his heart was heavy. “Look at this place. Taiyo’s domain. Maybe he will take pity and spare me.”

  “If he spares any man, it should be you. I understand what you did—you sacrificed yourself for the sake of our treaty. Though I am grateful, it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth to be at peace with these women, knowing what it cost.”

  “Swallow your pride, Ozora,” Takeo said. “Or my sacrifice will be in vain. Think of your people. Our soldiers. Their families. I would do this all again if it would save them from the horror of more war.”

  King Ozora nodded.

  “Take care of Azura,” Takeo said, willing his voice not to break. “She’s not like her mother. She’s one of the good ones.”

  “I will,” Ozora said. The king clapped Takeo on the shoulder and drew him into a tight hug.

  The men pulled apart and Ipan approached next, pulling Takeo into another embrace. “May your steps never take you where the sun doesn’t shine, friend. Though there is little chance of that here.” Ipan’s grin was infectious.

  “Good for a laugh until the very end,” Takeo said.

  “Gotta be good for something,” Ipan said.

  “You’re good for plenty. Take care of h
im,” Takeo said, motioning his head slightly to the king. “He needs a level head to balance him out.”

  Ipan nodded and backed away, leaving Takeo standing on the dark sand.

  The riders remounted their koumori and launched into the sky. He watched them until their black shapes disappeared among the twinkling stars. Takeo felt the weight of the empty sky settle over him. He was truly alone.

  CHAPTER 18

  Azura

  Azura awoke with a gasp. The darkness smothered her like a thick blanket. Just inches from her sides, her fingers made contact with cold, hard stone. She felt above her, then down to where the lid met the stone to the side of her. She was surrounded. Lying in a crypt. Just as they had planned.

  Except Lyra was supposed to be with her. As a seishen, Lyra could make herself incorporeal when she wanted. They planned for Lyra to summon Master Vita when Azura awoke.

  “Lyra?” she whispered, her scratchy voice reverberating within her stone tomb. She moved her feet around towards the bottom of the coffin, feeling for a warm furry body. Nothing.

  “Lyra?” she said again, louder, this time the word sounding suspiciously like a sob. No response. She was alone.

  Azura’s breath hitched in her throat as she tried to fight down the terror that was creeping up her spine like a spider. Her heart hammered as she imagined the darkness compressing down, closing in around her. She banged on the lid with her fists, scraping them against the rough interior.

  “Help!” she cried. “Lyra! Vita! Help!” She didn’t care that some mourner in the crypt might hear her and realize she was not, in fact, dead. At that moment, it didn’t matter if their whole plan was exposed. She wanted out.

  Azura felt frantically for a seam in the coffin, trying to push with all her might. There was no moonlight in her coffin, no way to burn through the stone and make herself an exit. She tried to pull her knees up to her chest to use the strength of her legs to shove the lid off, but there wasn’t space to get her feet up.

  She banged and thrashed against the cold rock, losing herself in tidal wave of dark panic. Tears flowed freely down the sides of her face now, and she finally flopped back, exhausted. She would die in here. Really die. And Takeo would die in the desert. The futility of it washed over her. All her efforts. Their love. She had thought it was fate…But maybe her mother was right. Maybe she was a naive fool.

  Just when despair wrapped her in its foul embrace, a warm body materialized next to her, pressed against her feet.

  “Lyra?” she cried, her voice hoarse from screaming.

  “Making quite a ruckus, aren’t you?” Lyra’s voice said. Azura nearly dissolved from relief. “You scared me to death,” she said. “I thought I was going to die in here!”

  “Sorry,” Lyra’s guilty voice said. “I was coordinating with Master Vita, making sure everything is ready for your big escape.”

  “Is it?” Azura asked.

  “Yes, I think so,” she said. “I’ll be right back, ok?”

  “Don’t go,” Azura said, her panic threatening to wash over her once again.

  “Take a breath,” Lyra said. “If you ever want to get out of here I have to go to get Master Vita. I will be right back.”

  “Ok,” Azura said.

  Lyra’s presence disappeared, and she was alone once again.

  Azura handled the darkness better this time. Knowing someone was coming for her made all the difference. She passed the time picturing Takeo’s astonished face when she appeared in the desert to rescue him, their tearful reunion. The little house they would find outside of a tidy Kitan village. It was there that they would live out their days. She would be the village healer and Takeo would breed horses. She could picture every happy detail.

  The grinding sound of stone against stone banished her daydream. A crack of light appeared as the top of her coffin was slowly pushed to the side. Master Vita’s concerned face appeared in the crack.

  “Azura? Are you all right?”

  “Yes,” she said, relief flooding her. As soon as the crack was big enough for her to wriggle out of, she sat up, climbing out of the stone box with a shudder. “Thank you.”

  “I’m glad you’re all right. I feared the dose I gave you was too strong.”

  “It worked perfectly,” she said, deciding to leave out her blind panic at awaking alone in the dark. “How is everyone…handling things?” she asked, as delicately as she could.

  “Your mother is in mourning,” Master Vita said. “She hasn’t come out of her chambers. Her maid told me that she has been raving about the sunburners poisoning you, as retribution for Takeo.”

  “That’s madness!” Azura said. “She should think I killed myself after the horrible things she said to me.”

  “I agree. Ozora and Ipan weren’t even here when you died. But the sunburners left at daybreak, anyway. Tempers are high.” Master Vita said. “It’s best that we get you out of the city and on your way before things heat up.”

  Azura nodded, struggling through the riptide of emotions flooding her mind. If her own death led to more problems between Kita and Miina…Azura shook off the thought. It wouldn’t come to that. There was nothing linking the sunburners to her “death.”

  “I brought some clothes for you,” Master Vita said, handing her a bundle.

  She looked down at what she was wearing and realized they had dressed her in an ornate lace dress of pure white. Her skin crawled at the idea of servants clothing her unconscious body, but she put her unease aside. Time to focus on the task at hand.

  Azura slipped behind another crypt to change into the plain brown dress Master Vita had brought her. She put on the sturdy leather boots, and clasped the thick cloak around her shoulders. She quickly braided her hair and secured it with a ribbon, throwing the braid over her shoulder. The cloak’s deep hood should be enough to keep her disguised until she could make it out of the city.

  She emerged from behind the stone crypt to find Master Vita and Lyra waiting for her. He handed her a pack, which she nearly dropped to the ground in surprise at its heft.

  “What’s in this?” she asked.

  “Food, a waterproof tarp and bedroll for sleeping, a knife, a medical kit, some money, and water. Lots of water,” he said.

  “You’ve thought of everything,” she said, as she tightened the straps of the pack over her shoulders.

  “I wanted to give you the best chance,” he replied. He paused, removing his glasses and wiping them with a white cloth that emerged from his pocket. “I love you like a daughter, Azura. I fear for where your path is taking you, but I know that you are capable of meeting any challenge you find.” When he looked up, his eyes were misty.

  “You prepared me well,” she said, finding herself choking up as well. Master Vita had taught her to read, to count, to tell time. He had taught her to think critically, to question, to discern the difference between right and wrong for herself. He had been there for all of her most important moments. She couldn’t believe she was leaving him.

  She swallowed, the weight of what she was undertaking finally sinking in. She was leaving. For good. Leaving her home, everyone she had ever known. Leaving safety and comfort. Setting out into the Tottori Desert to try to rescue a man who may already be dead. Though her stomach flipped nervously at the thought, it also filled her with undeniable excitement. This was the beginning of her new life.

  “I think I’ll miss you most of all,” she said, and pulled him into a tight hug.

  He kissed the top of her head, and finally stepped away. “It’s time,” he said.

  Master Vita triggered the secret passage in the back of the crypt and they followed the dark tunnel under the citadel walls and up towards the city.

  When the door opened at the other side, letting in a sliver of moonlight, Master Vita pulled Azura into another embrace. “Be safe,” he said.

  “Take care of Airi as best you can,” she said. “And Miina.”

  He nodded, and she slipped out the door and into the
city.

  CHAPTER 19

  Takeo

  Takeo wasn’t sure which he hated more, the days or the nights. During the day, when the hot sun burned down on him like a roaring furnace, leeching the water from his already parched body, he was sure he hated daytime more. Although he could sunburn to divert the sun’s rays from him, the light was relentless and he had to hold the magic continually, draining his already depleted strength. It was no substitute for true shade.

  After dark, he was certain that he hated the nights more. For about thirty minutes, after the sun set and the air began to cool, the desert was a pleasant twilight landscape of muted color and heat. But then it grew bitter cold. The breeze that had been so welcome during the day now threatened to shake his bones out of his body.

  The first day and night, Takeo had been filled with firm determination. Surviving the desert would be the greatest challenge he had ever undertaken. But he would rise to it, and find a way out. He would overcome this.

  The second day and night, Takeo’s determination wilted. He was thirsty. He hadn’t found any water. He hadn’t seen any other signs of life. When he happened upon an outcropping of rocks, he rested there, grateful for a small measure of relief.

  Despair festered within him. He prayed to Taiyo, though he had little confidence that Taiyo would bless him with survival. Did he even believe in the god anymore? As a boy, he had loved the stories of Taiyo’s adventures: like when Taiyo wrestled a comet out of the night sky, or when he tricked the golden bear and stole his tail. As Takeo grew, the god had become a companion—someone with whom to share his fears and his dreams. But when Takeo became a man, the god had become…inconvenient. Takeo saw his life’s path and no longer needed Taiyo to guide his steps. Maybe he shouldn’t have been so certain of his own capabilities. For now it appeared that Taiyo had abandoned him.