by Melody Rose
I opened the door and walked through. The study was lined with bookshelves, so many that it almost rivaled the library on the first floor of the court. Dark oak furniture was strategically placed about the room, with comfy armchairs by the window, a desk stacked high with pieces of parchment, and candlesticks with dwindling wicks.
King Elroy sat in a stiff wooden chair with a blanket around his shoulders as the fire blazed beside him. Across from the king, there was a square end table with a chess set mid-game. On the other side of the table sat an empty chair, the one I used to sit in during our lessons.
I sat in that very chair now and waited for the king to notice me. His hunched posture and locked eyes indicated that he was in his own world. He studied the board so intensely that I thought I could hear his thoughts as they blazed by, searching for the correct answer.
However, it was my brain that thought of it first. Thanks to Queen Irena, of course.
“Try Knight to E4,” I suggested casually, playing off the idea as my own.
At first, I wasn’t sure Elroy heard me. He didn’t move, only continued to stare at the pieces. Then, his eyes went round, and his eyebrows arched almost to arrow points. He flicked his gaze up to my smirking face before returning to the board and moving the white knight to E4.
“Checkmate,” the king announced softly.
I tipped the black king over just for kicks. “Well done.”
“How did you see that?” Elroy asked desperately. “I’ve been fiddling with that problem nearly all night.”
“Your great-grandmother saw it,” I said lightly. “She told me to tell you.”
“My…” The king seemed to forget where he was for a second. “Do not tell me that one of the dragons gave you the ability to talk to the dead.”
I laughed. King Elroy was one of the few who knew about my multiple abilities. I decided to tell him after I saved his life the second time, that time from his traitorous cousin Jae. He begged, poked, and prodded to know how I had done it. So, I told him the truth, save for the part where I compelled Jae, and how Kehn’s gift helped me. I figured Kehn had kept his gift a secret for this long, I wasn’t going to be the one to spoil it.
“No,” I said, finishing off my laugh. “Apparently, she did it of her own accord. She said she had a couple of things to tell me.”
“And me, it would seem,” Elroy added. “Is there anything else, or was she only concerned for my chess game?”
“She said to not be afraid of change,” I said, the words coming out easily as if I committed them to memory. “You have to adapt, or you will lose your kingdom.”
King Elroy sat still for a moment, his eyes the only thing moving. They flitted from me to the fire to the chessboard to the floor. They scattered about, trying to find a comfortable thing to land on. Nothing seemed to satisfy his nerves, however.
“I see,” was his reply. The king rubbed his chiseled and clean-shaven chin. “I do not know how to respond to that.”
“I think the messaging is a one way kind of thing,” I said in an attempt to be reassuring. “I don’t know what you want to do with that advice, but when I asked her what I should say to you, that’s what she told me.”
“On the surface, it is not very helpful is it,” Elroy contemplated.
“If it makes you feel any better,” I said, “I’m not sure any of what she told me was helpful.”
“What did she tell you?” the king wanted to know.
“The good news is that it’s mainly stuff to help me defeat Reon,” I started. “The bad news is it’s a little cryptic and hard to understand.”
“Can you remember the specifics?” King Elroy asked. “I am happy to help if I can, that is, if you want to share it with me.”
“I was hoping you would offer,” I said with a smile. “I thought that the fact that you’re her great-grandson and, you know, the king might give you some insight that others might not.”
I recited the riddle for Elroy, who listened the first time. He then prompted me to recite it a second time, slower so that he could write it down. The third time was so he could check what he had written with that I recited. The king pressed his nose to the paper and paced around the room. It was a miracle he didn’t run into anything. Then again, it was his study, and he designed the best way to fit him, so I guess I didn’t need to be so surprised.
After a little bit of this, Elroy removed the paper from his nose, though a tiny black dot from the ink now rested there. I tried to ignore it as he spoke.
“Oh, my great-grandmother was a clever one,” he said with a smirk. Elroy flattened the paper on his desk and beckoned me over. “This part, the two halves of one whole, is her symbol.”
“What?” I asked, baffled. “I thought that had to do with the key.”
“That is just it!” Elroy exclaimed excitedly. “Her symbol is the key.”
The king took out his quill again and dipped it into the vial of ink. At the bottom of the paper that he scribbled the riddle on, he drew something new. First came the circle, then he made the iconic jagged line through the center from top to bottom.
“Two halves of one whole,” King Elroy said as he pointed to each side. “You need to find a physical representation of this symbol. One that’s not whole.”
“Does the riddle mention anything about where they are located?” I asked, possibly hoping for too much.
“That is the trickiest part of the whole thing,” Elroy said with the briefest hesitation. “I think they are on opposite ends of the continent.”
“Excuse me?” I blurted. “In opposite directions?”
“Yes,” Elroy continued. “The two coasts to be exact.”
“How long does it take to get to each coast?” I asked, knowing that I needed the answer despite the fact that I was sure it wouldn’t be an answer I wanted.
“It takes three months to travel the length of it on foot, a little shorter on horseback, obviously,” Elroy stated.
“And by dragon?” I hinted.
Elroy paused and cocked his head at me. “Flying? Well, I have to say it has not been calculated to my knowledge.”
“Perfect,” I muttered.
“Are you going to go then?” the king wondered.
“That’s the thing,” I said tentatively. “We were already planning a trip to the ruined mountain of Rictorus, and we were hoping to leave today. Then Queen Irena came to me in that dream and kind of derailed our plans. Or rather, set us on the right course, if I’m honest.”
“Were you planning to tell me before Queen Irena visited you, or were you hoping to sneak off like a thief?” King Elroy said with a raised eyebrow.
“I really wanted to go with just the dragons,” I offered, trying to soften the blow. “But then some humans and djers caught on, so they’re coming now too.”
“Who is it exactly?” King Elroy asked curiously.
I listed off all the members of our party, including the dragons, because I felt the need to explain that everyone would have a dragon, especially if Julei rode with Monte and me.
“It sounds like you have nearly everything planned,” the king said, his voice low and slow. “If I may, I do have one piece of advice for such a large party.”
“Go for it,” I said encouragingly. “I’ll take any advice I can get right now.”
“You need to split up.”
“What?” My mouth popped open. “No way.”
“You will cover much more ground if a group of you go to one coast and the other seven or eight to another coast,” King Elroy reasoned. “I know it is not ideal, but you are not splitting a party of two. There’s fifteen of you all, for heaven’s sake! You all will be perfectly well equipped and safe in those numbers.”
I thought about Elroy’s suggestion. He made an excellent point, considering we didn’t exactly know how long it would take to get there via air travel. We would have better chances of finding the key to the gate quicker if we had more people searching in the two known locations, esp
ecially with the looming deadline over our heads. Though I didn’t know how the clan or the humans would feel about being separated for so long. Also, I had to think about who I would trust in as the leader for the second group.
I didn’t need to think about it long. He wouldn’t like it, but it was the best option for everyone.
“I’ll go over it with the rest of the group,” I said diplomatically.
“You can do that, but remember to stick to what you believe is right,” King Elroy suggested. “You should always take the advice of your most trusted people. But if you are the one to make the ultimate decision, make sure you can filter out all the opinions as needed.”
“Thank you, Elroy,” I said sincerely.
“I’ll keep pouring over the riddle, and if I discover anything new, I’ll send word as best I can,” Elroy offered.
“That would be great,” I said with a nod.
“Eva,” Elroy said suddenly, his voice serious. “Thank you for helping my kingdom.”
“You’re welcome, but that’s the thing, Elroy,” I reminded him, “it’s not just your kingdom. It’s mine and everyone else who lives in it. They deserve to live their lives in their home.”
“You are right,” Elroy conceded. “I will continue to try to remember that this kingdom is not mine alone.”
“Don’t be afraid of change,” I repeated for him, though I had no doubt that advice was as permanent in his mind as a tattoo would be.
“I will work on that while you work on finding and assembling that key,” the king said like an order.
I took it as one and scampered out of his office as King Elroy went to reset his chessboard.
6
Kehn
“You want to do what?”
I was sure I hadn’t heard her right. Eva must have completely lost her mind. It sure sounded like it considering what she had just told us.
Apparently, in the space of an evening, Eva had convinced Jae to tell us about Reon’s big plan to contamination everyone during the upcoming Lunar Eclipse. She also had been visited by the ghost of Queen Irena, or some variation of the late queen, who told her about some broken key that we need to fix to get into the hidden mountain where Reon is hiding. To top it all off, that meeting she had with the king convinced her to split up the group.
Now, I wasn’t convinced by her explanation regarding Jae. That whole situation sounded fishy, and it wasn’t clear if Jae was telling the truth or not. Also, I had reason to doubt that Eva was visited by anyone in her dreams last night since she slept so soundly. Eventually, when I had to move because my arm filled with tingles, and I couldn’t feel it anymore, she hardly noticed when I shoved her. Eva continued to snore without a care in the world.
Yesterday, we were going blindly into a mission to defeat Reon, and now, we had more information and a completely different plan.
“I have to be honest,” Freja piped up, “this sounds like we are being led around falsely.”
We could always count on the guard to voice her honest opinion in a blunt and sometimes harsh manner. I was grateful for her at this moment because she voiced what at least half of us were thinking.
“I know,” Eva reasoned, “but I promise, this is the best chance we have.”
“This would have been information worth waking up for,” one of the dragons, the dark blue one, grumbled.
I had a hard time remembering any of their names beyond Monte. There were so many of them, and I hardly saw the other six. It was something I knew I was going to have to learn, especially if Eva expected to split us up.
“The idea of separating is what bothers me,” Troylan interjected. “It seems that we should stick together if we can.”
Another valid point. There was strength in numbers, especially if we came across anything dangerous. Hannan and Eva once told me about the minion of Reon’s that exploded and thus contaminated part of Heloise’s hometown. Healing that town caused Eva to be unconscious for three days. We couldn’t let that happen to her again because, even though Eva promised not to push herself that far, the woman would do whatever was necessary, even at the sacrifice of herself, to save Andsdyer.
“Okay, but think of it tactically,” Eva argued. “You have two enemy camps, and you’re on a deadline. If there are enough troops, wouldn’t you split the party in order to attack both within the deadline?”
“It makes sense to me,” Hannan agreed.
I wanted to punch him in the mouth when he blindly agreed with her like that. What did he know of tactical anything? The answer was none, but after this morning, after Eva’s warning look, I decided not to say anything. I didn’t need to push Hannan’s buttons, no matter how much fun I found it.
“I hate to ask this,” I said, changing the subject a little, “but Julei, have you ‘seen’ anything related to this decision?”
Julei Mason was the oldest of the five Mason children. Their whole family had become very dear to Eva and consequently me, Hannan, and Heloise. Eva saved their youngest son Lance after becoming contaminated at Julei’s birthday party. Julei’s djer was a black cat with violet eyes that matched the young girl’s. Her gift allowed her to have visions of the future. From what I knew about her gift, her visions were always true. If she saw something about Eva’s new plan, maybe that would help convince everyone one way or the other.
“No,” Julei said as she shook her head in dismay. “I did not see or dream anything useful. When I do, you will know.”
Well, so much for that. It was worth a try, though. Any help we could get from our gifts would be beneficial. The thought did cross my mind to tell the group about my gift, so I could push them a little more. I wondered what would happen if I amplified Julei’s seer abilities. I didn’t want to appease that curiosity for fear that it might backfire and become too powerful for the girl. Unfortunately, with my enhancement abilities, that was always a dangerous possibility.
“We will follow Lady Eva’s guidance,” Chyndron, the red dragon, announced to the group. “If she wishes to divide us, then we shall.”
“Well, don’t say it like that,” Eva lamented. “Divided makes it sound like we’re against each other. Which we’re not. We have the same goal, to save Andsdyer and defeat Reon. This is how we’re going to do that.”
“I am with you, Eva,” Hannan agreed. “Tell us where to go, and we will follow.”
Heloise and Stella looked at each other. The caretaker and the noblewoman had been together for the past several weeks, having united during the introduction process that Stella and Eva had been a part of. Heloise and Hannan worked together in the Menagerie, and Stella and I grew up together.
Some part of me thought it was weird that all of us had reunited at this point in our lives. If you had asked any of us a couple of years ago if we thought we would be a part of the movement to stop Reon and actually have a chance of defeating him, we would have thought you insane.
“As long as Stella and I get to be in the same group, we are in,” Heloise said, laying out her parameters.
“Definitely doable,” Eva said, spurred on by the support.
“I go where you go, Eva,” Julei said, making her decision. “Not only because I want to, but because my parents said so.”
“I agree with your parents, Julei,” Eva said with a definitive nod. “Which leaves the guards. What do you think, soldiers?”
Freja, Troylan, and I all exchanged our own glances. While I looked at my fellow guards, a familiar voice popped into my head.
“The only reason you do not like this idea is that you know she is going to put you in the opposite group from her,” Uri said honestly.
The sphinx lounged on a stonewall nearby. She wore her pale sweater, which helped ward off the unwanted cold. Having a human female face and a lion’s body gave her a weird overall look to some people, but Uri always looked normal to me except when she wore her sweaters. She loathed the cold, always preferring scalding hot climates. My djer reluctantly decided to accompany us on this
mission and knew she could act as a fast messenger if needed between Andsdyer and us.
However, our mental link meant that she sometimes liked to pop into my thoughts with unhelpful observations.
“That is not true,” I argued back, refusing to concede to Uri’s idea. “I do not believe we should split up the group. Splitting the party seems like an ill-advised idea in this situation.”
“Because it means splitting Eva from you,” the sphinx taunted.
“Uri,” I snapped in my head, “I do not need this right now.”
“Yes, you do because it is preventing you from thinking logically,” Uri snapped right back. Her amber eyes flicked my way, and I chose to ignore her, yet her voice still penetrated my mind. “If everything Eva says is true, then you need to find those pieces of the key as soon as possible. Given the distance, the best way to do that is to split up the group. Because you are the most experienced, the second-in-command to the guard for heaven’s sake, she will assign you to be in charge of one group, and she will be in charge of the other one. Which means splitting you up, which is why you are stubbornly refusing to accept her very smart idea.”
I crinkled my nose and breathed heavily. As much as I did not want to admit that Uri had a point, my gut told me otherwise. I knew what I had to do for Andsdyer, but I wanted to rekindle my relationship with Eva. I messed up when I lied to her about being contaminated. But now that I apologized and was better, now far away from the brink of death, I realized I wanted to be with her.
When I tried to push her away for her own safety, I was an idiot. Eva was one of the most capable people I knew, and I had been a fool to think otherwise. I thought this journey would give us a chance to reconnect, sparked by the incident a week ago when we saved King Elroy from Jae.
Now, that opportunity would be gone without a single chance at redemption. The rational side of me knew what needed to be done, but the emotional side wanted to be at Eva’s side as much as possible.
“Another way of looking at it,” Uri said, her voice sliding back into my thoughts, “is that if you find the missing half of the key with your group, you will impress Eva enough to win her back.”
