WhiteWing

by Connie Suttle

  "Where is she?" he asked.

  "The Queen has her," I said. I wasn't sure where she was; I only knew that Queen Lissa was keeping her safe.

  "Tell me how to convince the Queen to give the winged woman to me."

  "I don't know," I whimpered. "The Queen is very strong. I have no influence upon her."

  "What about the Avii King? Might he have influence with her?"

  "She will listen to him," I nodded.

  "Good. Perhaps a few shots at his castle with a small, ranos cannon will garner his attention, then. Come, you say you have accounts to deliver. I will travel with you. We will command the Avii King's attention, never fear. Board your boat, captain. We go now."

  That is how I found myself guiding the tourist vessel toward the cleft in the glass castle.

  My kidnapper hadn't asked about the castle; I didn't tell him it wasn't the real thing. King Justis wasn't in residence. Guards and soldiers inhabited the structure, along with a few wives and children.

  The original castle was impervious to bullets, bombs and missiles. I could only hope this one was the same as I cut the engine and drifted the boat closer to the cleft.

  "Drop anchor," my captor demanded.

  I did as I was told and watched in horror as he pulled a device from the large bag he carried. I'd never seen such before; it looked like a large pipe, the circumference the same as my forearm.

  Setting the device on his shoulder, he took aim at the crevice.

  "No," I whispered.

  Dena would be waiting there.

  Her child could be with her.

  "No," I whispered again, before he told me to shut up and fired.

  * * *

  Queen's Palace, Le-Ath Veronis

  Quin

  Get out! My mental shout must have echoed in every mind across the planet, I was suddenly so terrified.

  Lissa's mental sending echoed mine a fraction of a second later.

  In my mind, I saw the horror of it; the replacement castle blasted, cracked and disintegrating, with only a few Black Wings flying to safety. I saw it as if in slow motion, falling into the sea with a terrible roar and the sounds of grinding glass.

  Huge waves poured toward the shore, causing me to send another message to anyone there.

  Get out, I whimpered. Higher ground.

  Please.

  * * *

  Lissa

  More than half of Justis' Black Wing army was dead, along with many wives and a few of their children.

  Dena, Ardis and their child were among the victims.

  V'ili had folded away when the castle started to fall, leaving Orik behind to wash ashore and die when his boat crashed into a pier on the beach.

  I knew this because Bree arrived to read Orik afterward. I wanted to ask her about Changing What Was. She answered my question before I could ask it.

  "This has to proceed as is," she sighed. "Changing these things will interrupt the future."

  "Things?"

  "This isn't the only fortress to fall," she replied. "We are at a delicate balance. I shouldn't have to fix everything, you know." She'd left me then to ponder her words.

  Justis was devastated by the events, yet still had a terrible duty to perform; Trace took him and Quin to Avendor, so they could tell the Avii of the attack and arrange for a mourning period.

  "It could have been worse," Winkler sat beside me atop the main dome of my palace.

  "People always say that," I snapped. "As if what happened wasn't bad enough already."

  "I know." He settled an arm around my shoulders and pulled me close. "We can't change everything," he whispered against my hair before placing a kiss there. "Terrible things happen all the time. I used to tell myself that it taught us strength. How many scars can be cut into our hearts before there is no room left for new ones?"

  That's when I buried my face against his shoulder and wept.

  * * *

  Paricos II

  Ilya

  Tamp stood at the edge of the mainland cliff, staring out at what remained of his compound.

  The Rock was nothing more than a pile of rubble, now. The number of survivors was relatively small, but those of us who remained stood at Tamp's back, studying the devastation with him.

  I had an idea that Zaria had pulled several away the moment she knew the Rock was targeted. Deen, Jin, Chief Darkins, Tamp's chief spy and the three remaining warlocks were among those rescued.

  Turtle, Flyer and I made sure that our shields held up long enough to get Hal, Bleek and our belongings out before allowing the cave to collapse behind us.

  Zaria stepped forward and placed her hand inside mine—she was chilled to the bone and wore no coat. Weir and Arna are behind this, she said. They killed everybody at the meeting last night except us.

  Weir wants Paricos II? I asked. Baby, you're freezing.

  He and Arna want Paricos II, she said. Gubb's in on it, too, I think.

  I'll take care of that, I began.

  Hold on; let's plan this carefully, she cautioned. There's something else you don't know, too. V'ili fired a ranos rocket at the replacement castle on Le-Ath Veronis. Most of the people inside it died when the whole thing shattered and came down.

  Fuck, I said. What about? I'd been about to say Ardis and his wife.

  Dead, Zaria sighed. Their baby, too. Quin is devastated.

  Understandable, Hal said. Zaria had included all our group in her sending. I sincerely hope that we are there when Cayetes and his pet Sirenali die, Hal added.

  It would be a true pleasure, Turtle agreed.

  At that moment, Tamp turned and his gaze settled on Zaria. "Whose compound shall we take? There are many available after last night," he said.

  "You must realize," Zaria said, "that many out of work employees have run to Weir after last night's events. He is adding them to his army. Weir thinks we are weak and intends to take us, too. He has no idea what he will truly face, should he challenge us."

  "Where shall we go to rebuild my army?" Tamp asked her.

  "Come. We won't need to rebuild, although if you wish to add more employees, we will do so."

  "Where are we going, lady?" Nyarr asked.

  "Revis' compound. There are a few left who do not wish to serve Weir. We will offer jobs to those deserving. There, too, we will have the sea at our backs."

  "We can place floating bombs about Revis' harbor," Nyarr agreed. "It will be difficult to bring anything past those."

  "That compound has a thick wall surrounding it," Darkins agreed. "With shielding spells placed by the warlocks, it will be next to impossible to breach."

  "Good," Tamp agreed. "Chief Darkins, place a reward on those sites," he said. "For Arna, Weir and anyone else in league with them."

  "I'll do it right away, Master Tamp."

  "Good. Who wishes to visit Gubb's bar with me, to watch him die?"

  "I've imagined his death many times," I let go of Zaria's hand and stepped forward.

  "Smith, I will allow your steel to dispose of that traitor."

  "I will come," Zaria said. "I want to see his face before he dies."

  * * *

  Avii Castle, Avendor

  Quin

  I watched as three of my feathers floated away in the breeze on Gurnil's terrace. Ordin had already been to check on me—at Justis' insistence. I'd read in him what Lissa had already known by scent; I was pregnant with Justis' child.

  I should have felt joy at that revelation. Instead, it only brought home the sharp pain of Dena's loss, with that of Ardis and their child.

  Grinding glass had killed them and destroyed their bodies. Somewhere on the light half of Le-Ath Veronis, bits of feathers were washing ashore.

  It was all that was left of those who'd died, which hadn't already sunk to the floor of the sea.

  The remainder of the Black Wing army had come to Avendor with Justis and me; in time, Justis would be forced to choose a new commander.

  For now, they were leaderless
and in mourning, many bearing guilt because they survived while others didn't.

  "Here." Gurnil laid a light blanket about my shoulders as I stared, unseeing, at the groves of gishi trees south of his terrace. Even in the warmth of Avendor's sun I felt chilled.

  "When Elabeth and Camryn died," Gurnil sat beside me on the bench I occupied, "We didn't know what to do. We walked about in a daze, I think, because we were so numb. There was no sleep, few felt hungry—I thought we were done as a race."

  "Why them?" I asked. He knew I meant Dena and her small family, not Elabeth and Camryn.

  "That question is asked whenever someone is taken before their time," Gurnil said softly. "Why not another? Someone deserving of death. I cannot tell you how many times I asked myself that when Elabeth died."

  "How do you get through it?" I wiped tears away.

  "You don't. Eventually, you are reminded that your purpose—and your time—is still functional. If there is anyone who can stop time, they are far more powerful than any I've met. Dena and Ardis—they served until the end. Just as we must serve until the end. If death had taken you, instead, would you want Dena to collapse and die, too?"

  "No, she had so many things to live for," I mumbled, wiping more tears.

  "As do you. Never forget that, dear one." Gurnil rose and stretched his wings. "If you need something, ask Ordin or me. We will do anything in our power for you."

  "Thank you." I clamped my wings tighter to my back beneath the blanket before wrapping the warmth of it better around me. Perhaps I should go to Justis—he suffered just as I did in this terrible, terrible loss.

  * * *

  Paricos II

  Ilya

  "Somebody beat us to it," Nyarr muttered as we stared at Gubb's body. We'd found the bar gutted by looters, the employees scattered and Gubb's body lying half in and half out the doorway into the kitchen.

  "Weir's men," Zaria grumbled. "To prevent him from talking or taking money to reveal Weir's many betrayals."

  Tamp's lips tightened but he made no comment and refrained from asking Zaria how she knew or suspected those things. I imagined he thought the same; Zaria was merely voicing his own opinions.

  "Shall we move what little we have into Revis' compound?" Nyarr toed Gubb's body before turning to Tamp.

  "It is now Tamp's compound," I said. "Revis no longer cares, as he's dead."

  "True enough," Tamp agreed. "Nyarr, take us, if you please."

  * * *

  Zaria

  "Just as I was getting the hang of working metal, too," Turtle grumbled as we walked through the massive kitchen in the new compound. Much of the compound had been looted by escaping employees, but the kitchen remained intact for the most part.

  "We have barely fifty here with us," Loor said as he walked in to find us taking stock of the food and supplies. "Tamp asks if you can cook for that many. He knows you cooked for yourselves at the Rock."

  "I can cook for that many, and we have enough food here to do for a few days," Turtle agreed. "With Flyer's and Zaria's help, we can feed the crew until a suitable kitchen staff is hired."

  "My brothers and I can arrange for supplies to be brought in," Loor said.

  "We'll need fresh milk, eggs, that sort of thing soonest," Turtle said. "Zaria can do the same, if Tamp allows."

  "Master Tamp wants Zaria beside him most of the time, I think," Loor said after a brief hesitation. "He is grateful for her warning at Zarbec's compound, you understand."

  "I do," Turtle agreed amiably. "Nevertheless, she is also a fine cook."

  "Noted," Loor grinned. "Zaria, after you freshen up, Tamp would like to see you."

  "I'll be there soon," I said.

  "I'll inform him."

  * * *

  Queen's Palace, Le-Ath Veronis

  Lissa

  Lenk wasn't expecting me—he hid his surprise well when I knocked on his door, but he was still surprised—and curious.

  He was under house arrest and knew it—vampire guards were posted outside his door at all times and went with him if he walked through the palace for any reason. I was there for a different reason.

  "Captain Lenk, it has occurred to me that you suffered losses, too," I said before he could form words.

  "You knew those who perished in the destruction—the winged ones," he said.

  "Yes. That's why I'm here—I want to take you to the light half of my planet today. We'll visit an old friend of mine."

  "What about?" he blinked at me in confusion. Vampires—in his knowledge, anyway—couldn't survive in the sun.

  "I'm special, as are a few others," I said. "Come, I'll take you."

  It was obvious that Captain Lenk had never been with anyone who could fold space, before. We stood in Corent's apple orchard in a blink, while the winds whispered through the leaves and the trees pushed out buds to tempt honey bees.

  "Lissa?" Corent appeared as if called, walking from between trees to greet us. If he'd materialized from a tree trunk, Lenk would have been less amazed.

  "Corent, Lenk and I have deaths to mourn," I explained.

  "Ah." Corent's hair, a sky-blue when we arrived, darkened. "The winged ones. Such a terrible loss."

  "Lenk also lost eleven of his men—who'd stood beside him for years," I said.

  Corent's stormy eyes studied me for a moment. "I see," he nodded. "Come. Please," he motioned us forward.

  Without a word, and with wonder still on his face, Lenk followed Corent and me. Eventually, Corent stopped beside a gnarled, bent apple tree. Those around it stood straighter. Taller. Bore more buds.

  "This is Angeline, my favorite tree," Corent turned and smiled at us. "She has lived long, and I have treated her carefully all these years. As you can see, however, she is failing. Another year, perhaps before she gives up her life in this spot."

  "Corent brought Angeline with him from another world—his people were under attack and forced to leave," I said. "She is all he has left of them, now."

  "All are dead?" Lenk whispered.

  "Except one other, and he lives elsewhere," Corent said.

  "I've baked pies from Angeline's apples," I said, brushing a tear away. "Many times. Corent always brought her apples to me."

  "What will you do? When she is no more?" Lenk's voice roughened with emotion.

  "I will miss her," Corent said. "And I will speak to her children about her. And we will share memories."

  "Her children?"

  "This grove surrounding us—they are all Angeline's children. From seed and cuttings, she created everything around you."

  "You will bear the news of your loss to the families those men left behind," I said, placing an arm around Lenk's waist. "Share your words and memories, Captain. Understand that what they did and how they lived is important to those who loved them."

  Corent left us after a while; Lenk and I wept together for those lost—and those who remained.

  Chapter 11

  Paricos II

  Revis' Rock

  Zaria

  "You wished to see me?" I asked when Tamp invited me into his new suite.

  "I did. Still do." Tamp said as he piled comp-vids and other things onto a massive desk. He was clearing away what was left of Revis' belongings.

  Someone had already cleared away debris and damaged furniture left behind—probably one or more of Tamp's warlocks had relocated all of it.

  I could easily read in Tamp how angry he was that his library and artifacts collection had been destroyed when the Rock came down. He held that anger in check as he continued clearing out Revis' desk.

  "How many compounds did Weir seize?" Tamp asked. He knew; he merely wanted to see whether I knew, too.

  "Thirty-seven, although many were small and not worth noting. Of the ones that matter, twenty-three. It would have been twenty-four, had he been successful in taking you down."

  "Are you always so thorough?" He looked up from his work to gaze at me.

  "I've learned that things go smoother and
more people live if I am."

  "I wonder if Weir would have made this move so soon had Arna not whispered in his ear."

  "I wonder that, too," I agreed. Tamp had already suspected Weir of duplicity. "Did Mayyab tell you of it?"

  "He said that Weir should be watched, but I suspected for years that Weir wanted all of Paricos II. He wishes to be feared. He wishes to compete with the biggest and the worst, I think. His nervousness—that comes from his fear that his ambition would be discovered. Arna has shored up his desires and cleared the way for his takeover, no doubt."

  "Does he have any idea who the biggest and worst are?"

  "I believe he knows of some," Tamp shrugged. "Perhaps not all. That could change quickly."

  "I agree," I said.

  "Tell me what you're thinking—and please do not filter your words to keep from offending me."

  "I think," I said, "That Weir of Paricos II, even with the assets he now has, is headed for the biggest war ever if he wants to get into a fight with Vardil Cayetes."

  Tamp went still for a moment. "I shouldn't be surprised that you know of Cayetes. He dropped out of sight for a while, but now is back and as strong as ever."

  "I know," I said. "I also know that several here had dealings with Cayetes, in one way or another. Weir may be calling for the heavens to fall if he wants a fight with Cayetes."

  "And those heavens will fall on Paricos II."

  "Yes."

  * * *

  Vardil Cayetes' Private Study

  V'ili

  "I had no idea the entire thing would fall," I snapped. "I merely wanted to get the attention of the winged king."

  "That isn't all our troubles," Vardil growled. "There was a coup on Paricos II. I've already received a message from the new—management."

  "We'll get our clones and bones from him, then," I huffed. "Simple."

  "Not so simple. He is refusing to do business with me. Says he has other buyers—our buyers—and will sell directly to them. At a lower price."

  Anger burned through my mind at Vardil's words. "He wishes to start a war with us?"

  "He wants what we have. I want the winged woman and that security device before we fire the first shot," Vardil hissed. He wanted assurance that he'd be kept healthy while he waged war, and the device would get us in and out of Paricos II without anyone the wiser.