by L J Andrews
She smiled and stepped just a few inches closer. “I’m fine. I’m so relieved you and your brothers are safe. Come inside, my mage has found some information that might help us find more mage support.”
Onyx took Ruby’s hand and together they rushed inside. Peran followed close behind with Raffi and Dash giving up their morning exercises. It would have to wait until we heard what had been found out about the High Priestess.
Chapter 11
I wasn’t doing well at keeping my promise to Teagan not to fret over Athika’s behavior toward him. She arrived within the hour and immediately went to Teagan’s side, filled with a thrill about the night.
“We have so much to tell you,” she said. Her hand was on his forearm. His forearm. I wanted to slap it away.
Mitch nodded, his hair messy and standing on end when he plopped onto one of the Victorian style sofas in the front room. “It was amazing. Like, how is any of this possible? I love my life,” he sighed, closing his eyes and resting his head against the couch.
Gently, Teagan tugged his arm out of Athika’s hold. I smirked when I saw him scan the room to find me. I was thankful he hadn’t put his shirt on, and when he turned to slide the sweatshirt over his head, I might have enjoyed Athika’s scowl at my seal on his back a little too much.
“Hey, do you have armor too, Jade?” Mitch asked, pointing to my arms. It drew Athika’s attention as well. Teagan smiled and settled next to me when I shook my head and spoke softly.
“No,” I said, glancing at Mitch as I drew my thumb over my seal. “We believe I’ve also been sealed. This is the symbol of the mage—so, like Teagan has mine, it seems I have his too.”
Athika slid down on the cushion next to me and touched my arm. I didn’t shrink back, because I only sensed her curiosity. “It is the ancient symbol of the mage,” she said, meeting my eye. “What exactly do wyvern seals mean? I ask because I don’t understand the bond with Teagan. Is it because you are the queen that he has a royal seal, perhaps?”
I shook my head. “I believe it’s because we love each other.”
Teagan’s lip rolled over his bottom teeth and I saw the way his cheeks reddened as he tried to stifle his smile. Okay, maybe I was being a little petty. I vowed to stop. Athika’s brow furrowed, but she didn’t respond. She only shook her head and drifted casually to the window seat.
Onyx and Peran entered the room with Eisha smiling and chatting lightly with the brothers. Ruby and Sapphire soon joined them. Raffi and Dash entered the room, holding bowls of dried meats, already shoveling food into their mouths when they found their place along the wall.
“So, Athika, we’re so anxious to hear what happened,” Ruby said.
“Onyx, good to see you again,” Athika said politely, nodding toward the royal.
“It has been much too long, Athika.”
“How is Donovan?”
“He is well, and stays behind with our youngest brother,” Onyx said.
“That is probably wise. Donovan will not let harm come to your brother, though I’m surprised he let you both out of his sight,” she said with a smile.
“It wasn’t easy,” Onyx said.
“I hate to interrupt the reunion,” Peran sighed, nudging his brother’s arm. “But weren’t you about to tell us where you and the human have been all night?”
“My name is Mitch. I’m not a servant or whatever.”
Peran didn’t say anything, only nodded in Mitch’s direction.
“No, Mitch is certainly not a servant, especially after last night. We found the courier,” Athika trilled, pausing dramatically to let her words sink in. “I warned Mitch she could sense his intentions, he had to block his emotions while he tried to take the correspondence.”
“So, when we found her,” Mitch took over, his eyes wide when he scooted to the edge of the sofa. “Athika stepped out. The other mage was surprised, but Athika played it cool. Don’t think I didn’t hear the subtle way you tried to sneak information about the High Priestess.”
“Well, a lot of good it did,” Athika grumbled.
Mitch nodded, but his smile never faded. “The mage was a vault. Sealed tight, she didn’t give up anything—except, like she told Athika before, she said she sensed the High Priest had returned. Whether she was talking about your deadbeat dad, Teagan, or you…who knows—”
“Wait!” Onyx interrupted. “What about your father?”
“Later, Onyx,” Athika insisted. “Just wait.”
“Anyway, while Athika had the mage distracted, I made my move. I took a deep breath…do you know how hard it is to keep your mind blank when you’re supposed to?” Mitch crooned. “I mean, when I need to think, all I have is an empty hole, but when I need to not think of anything and steal something—take my word for it, it’s practically impossible to clear your head,” Mitch chuckled.
“Did you get the correspondence?” Eisha asked.
Mitch nodded his head wildly so his dark curls bounced about. “Yes! She didn’t feel me snag it at all. I didn’t even brush the sack she kept it in.”
No one said anything, notably waiting for Mitch to continue, but after several tense moments it was clear that wasn’t going to happen.
“Dude,” Teagan scoffed. “What did it say?”
“Oh, sorry, I just wanted you all to marvel at my skills for a second,” Mitch said.
Onyx chuckled. “I like this human,” he said, folding his arms and leaning back to listen more of Mitch’s story.
“It was addressed to someone important,” Mitch continued, eyeing Athika playfully.
She grinned. “But not the High Priestess.”
I drew in a breath, feeling a wave of disappointment for Teagan. I knew he was afraid to meet the High Priestess if we ever found her, but I also knew he desperately wanted answers. He deserved answers.
“I’m going to crush your skulls if you don’t just tell us now,” Raffi snarled, earning him a fierce glare from Eisha.
“Well, dear Raffi, you and Dash may be most interested to know to whom this letter was addressed. I’m almost angry at myself for sending you both away, it would have been such fun to see your faces in the moment. I think you will recognize the name,” Athika said.
“Really?” Dash queried, his mouth full of jerky. “Who was it?”
Athika stood and sauntered into the center of the room, staring straight at the two warriors. “The correspondence was addressed to Thane of Krigare.”
I couldn’t understand why there was a pounding weight that dropped at the name. It meant something, though I didn’t know what. By Dash’s wide eyes, I knew it was important. Raffi dropped his bowl, the glass shattering and sprawling the salty meat along the wood floor.
“I told you they would be beside themselves, Mitch,” Athika said with a glance over their shoulders.
“Thane,” Sapphire said, rising to his feet slowly, with a tepid glance toward Eisha.
I released Teagan’s hand and rushed to Eisha’s side when my fellow wyvern crumbled forward, her thin fingers covering her face. “Eisha, what is it? Why does this name upset you?”
“It doesn’t upset me in the way you think,” Eisha whispered, wiping her eyes from her hot tears. “I know Thane well. My Gregor, Thane and Gregor were the royal guards. Gregor protecting the king and Thane…your parents, until…well, after the battle Thane became the lead warrior. I have not thought about him for years. I think after our final meeting and with no signs of the warriors, part of me believed him to be dead like everyone else.”
“Thane would not die without a fierce battle being made known,” Raffi snapped, his chest puffing up in pride.
“That’s the warrior,” Teagan said softly, glancing at Raffi. “The one who gave you his sword.” Raffi offered a curt nod, his body at attention as though the commanding warrior had entered the room.
“We all remember Thane,” Onyx said. “But it doesn’t answer why a mage would correspond with wyvern warriors instead of her High Priestess.”
“Well, did you find where he is?” Dash asked, a dripping desperation in his voice.
Now Athika’s smug smile faded and she shook her head. “The correspondence was well protected—coded almost. It was clear the courier had delivered messages to the warrior many times. She knew how to protect her letters. I had to get Mitch to safety when she realized he’d taken the letter. We left soon after she…escaped.”
“What happened?” Frenrir asked, stepping into the room. I would rather have this conversation away from the elders’ spy, but he simply leaned against the wall waiting.
Mitch sighed, his eyes averting from Sapphire. “Well, she got a little angry. She wasn’t unarmed, I’ll say that.” Mitch lifted his shirt and showed a hastily bandaged wound on his stomach. “She had knives.”
“Mitch,” I gasped, rushing to inspect his wound.
“I tried to heal him, but we had to leave quickly when she started tearing up the earth. She tried to swallow me up in the ground—a fellow mage,” Athika pouted.
I rolled my eyes, peeling back the soaked bandages made mostly of leaves and bits of Athika’s robe. The wound was deep and still bleeding. I dipped my hands along Mitch’s stomach and heard him gasp when my energy burst from my palms into his festering skin.
“Well, in the mage’s defense,” Ruby said softly, “you did try to rob her.”
Athika nodded in agreement and bent low to watch me work on Mitch. He shuddered under my touch and winced when the skin pulled and healed. “What exactly are you doing?” he asked through a tight jaw.
“Using energy to heal you,” I said, focusing my abilities toward the wound.
“It’s so warm,” he gasped. “But also like I’m being shocked.”
“Almost done,” I whispered, biting my lower lip. “There. It might leave a scar, but it should feel better tomorrow.”
Mitch and Athika inspected the wound. Athika smiled at me, and I sensed her admiration for the job. “You could pass for a mage,” she chuckled. “That wound was made with a mage blade, not easy to heal.”
“Why would a courier be armed?” Onyx offered, his eyes stern and focused on Athika.
“They are important,” Athika said, “But you’re right, it is strange that she was able to fight with a weapon—even more than her powers.”
“She fought like a warrior,” Teagan mused.
Raffi sparked to attention, nodding slowly. “She’s been with Thane. She is a courier for Thane! It makes sense why she would first use weapons to fight if she’s lived among warriors. But again, why would a mage stay with warriors over the High Priestess?”
“Maybe a mage would choose warriors if her leader joined with Bron, that’s why,” Teagan snapped, shooting to his feet.
“Teagan, don’t say that before we know,” Sapphire offered, but Teagan only shook his head.
“No,” he snapped, drawing Athika to eye him curiously. “It seems to me the mage haven’t seen the High Priestess for so long because she’s not who they once believed in. That or she’s dead. Either way, I think I’d rather not know.”
“Teagan,” Eisha interjected loud enough to bring him to a pause before he stormed from the room. “It’s possible the High Priestess is with Thane.”
The room grew still. My hands were bloodied from healing Mitch, but I didn’t care if I ruined my clothes when I hugged my middle, feeling Eisha’s reluctance. Whenever she spoke of the High Priestess, I could feel her pain. Not toward the great mage herself, but more toward Bron and his connection with the mysterious woman.
“What are you talking about?” Teagan asked, his voice dark and troubled. Athika took a few steps toward him, but I soon outpaced her and stood at his side.
Eisha lowered her eyes to her lap, but she spoke with a strong tone. “After the High Priestess warded this town, she left…with Thane and the warriors.”
“No, they were planning to go separate ways,” Raffi insisted.
“But what if they didn’t,” Eisha offered. “I’m only saying this because we all believe the High Priestess is Teagan’s mother. I don’t…I don’t want you to lose hope yet. Let’s find out for sure before you believe the people who gave you life are evil enough to take it away.”
I could have crushed Eisha in an embrace. Her words were sincere, and for the first time since Teagan Ward came to Wyvern Willows, I felt her affection, her care for the man I’d grown to love.
“She’s right, Teagan,” Sapphire said.
“Okay, but what do we do with what you guys learned?” Teagan asked. “It’s obvious this Thane doesn’t want to be found.”
“I don’t know,” Athika said. “From the energy I absorbed off the courier, she was searching for something to report back. We didn’t see what was in the message, only to whom it was addressed. But before she fought us away, it was clear she was seeking out certain information. Is it possible the entire fleet of wyvern warriors have always been nearby?”
“We would have felt them,” Dash whispered. “Long ago, I would sense my fellow warriors sometimes. Just faintly, but I knew they were still out there preparing for the war to begin again. It’s been silent for so many years.”
“Perhaps this is the sign that the war is beginning. This could mean,” Raffi swallowed hard before his lips widened into a dark smile. “It could mean Thane and our warriors are preparing to end Nag once and for all.”
Chapter 12
I sat on the damp grass, watching Raffi, Dash, and Teagan spar with Sapphire and Onyx. I was relieved that most of the royals seemed able to defend themselves alongside the warriors. Of course, no one was quite as skilled as warrior wyverns. The morning was warmer than it had been in months, and the kiss of the sun invigorated my energy.
Raffi lunged at Teagan, the clash of their swords drawing my gaze down the slope. Normally, I would join them, but today I wanted to watch. Teagan was distant since the report from Mitch. I thought, despite reassurances from the others, Teagan might still believe the High Priestess had abandoned her people and joined the lindworms. I tried to imagine how it might feel to think my mother would turn to darkness, abandoning me, and even being willing to kill me. I couldn’t fathom what might be rampaging in Teagan’s heart. So today, I wanted to watch. I wanted to see what he did, how he reacted. It seemed the only way I might understand how best to help him.
“May I sit with you?”
I glanced over my shoulder. Athika stood close, a thick sweater wrapped around her thin body, and she shivered against the wind. It was strange to see her struggle outside. Since I’d known Teagan, he seemed oblivious to the cold like most of the wyverns; even now he wore a gray tank top as he slashed his blade hard against Raffi’s heavy sword.
“Yes,” I said, trying my hardest to give Athika a chance I had yet to offer. “Of course.” I waited as Athika tucked the sweater beneath her legs as a barrier between the sopping grass and hugged her knees against her body. “So, I’m curious. How long has Ruby enjoyed Onyx’s company?” Starting with something pleasant, perhaps that might help the tension between us.
Athika smirked. “It began back at your grandfather’s castle. I was rumored to become the mage for the ruby line. My mother was the mage, but I knew my armor would come soon. Ruby and I were friends even before I was her mage, and I saw the two royals spend…more time than normal with each other. After the slaughter of the castle, when Ruby and I went to Egypt, Onyx found us. He visited once or twice, but being the protector of the onyx stone gives him power of water. Such energy in a desert brought too much unwanted attention. It’s been many decades since they’ve seen each other.” Athika grinned and turned her eyes to the sparring match below. “They refuse to admit they feel anything more, but it’s plain to see.”
“Well, it isn’t common for royal bloodlines to unite in a mate arrangement,” I offered.
“Yes, there seem to be many strange bonds as of late,” Athika whispered. I caught her meaning, a
nd my skin bubbled along my arms as the tension returned. Athika smirked and shook her head, watching Raffi and Dash strike at Teagan from each side. “Sometimes when I watch him with the warriors, he looks more like one of them than a mage.”
I nodded, clearing my throat. It was slightly frustrating watching her attention on Teagan, especially the way his muscles clenched and tightened with every capable blow of his weapon. “He’s learned a great deal and is really talented with those blades now,” I agreed.
“I can’t imagine how powerful he might be if he had more influences from the mage side,” she said plainly.
My eyes narrowed when I glanced across at her. “What do you mean? Mini was with him and taught him how to channel his energy. She was a great mage influence.”
“Yes,” Athika continued. “She was a wonderful mage, and Agatha is missed. But she died so soon after Teagan learned of his powers. He’s had more influence from Raffi, Sapphire, Dash…you. His energy needs to be able to face Bron and do more than banish him. Sometimes, Teagan seems more like a wyvern. Doesn’t that worry you, when the time comes that he battles one of the most powerful mages in history? If all he can do is wield a blade, he will not survive.”
“Why are you saying these things to me?” I snapped, feeling the heat rush to my cheeks. It took all my restraint to keep my promise to give Athika a fair chance.
She smiled sweetly and squared her shoulders toward me. “I just know you have a way of talking to Teagan. Your bond is strong. You should suggest he train with me. I can show him how to handle his power easier.”
“Athika, you’ve seen how strong he is with energy,” I interjected. “You’ve even expressed you were drawn to his strength. Don’t deny that; I can see it.”
Athika scoffed and clicked her tongue. “I suppose you’re right. I am drawn to his unique talents. He must be bound for greatness if he could restore the jade bloodline without even knowing his true nature. It’s rather remarkable. I just hope he meets his potential, without letting wild ideas of impossible connections cloud his mind.”
