But he understood.
"To Roninhythe, a nearby city, and then probably on to Rayfort so I can speak with m—" Rhen stopped short, biting the word father back into his lip. He looked up sharply, but Jin's concentration was elsewhere. Eventually, the boy would have to be told, but not yet. He still wanted to be Rhen, just Rhen, at least for a little while longer. "So I can get word to the king," he said, finishing the sentence softly.
"Is Roninhythe," Jin stumbled over the word, forcing it out, "is it a stone city?"
Rhen laughed loudly—he didn’t know what he had been expecting, but not that. The question was so simple, so straightforward when compared to the events of the day.
"Yes, Jin, it's a stone city. There is a large defensive wall around the limits and beside the port there is a great castle towering into the sky."
He smirked as Jin's eyes widened, imagining the scene. The oldworlder boy was about to be in for a big shock. Just wait until we reach Rayfort, Rhen thought, picturing his home. Its multiple defensive walls, the glittering town homes of the rich, and of course, the palace—stained glass windows, halls lined with silk tapestries, walls of white rock slabs that blinded in the sun.
Much different from animal skins and the forest.
"How tall?" Jin asked, looking up at the nearest tree.
"So tall," Rhen said, leaning in close, "that you can see this very forest on the horizon even though it is miles away. So tall that the highest tree you have ever climbed will seem small in comparison."
"It seems unnatural to build such a thing," the boy shook his head, disapproving.
Rhen smiled, raising his eyebrows in jest. "To my people, it would seem unnatural to live in the woods, without horses and carriages and stone walls."
"To my people, it—" Jin stopped short, drawing his knees into his chest, shaking slightly.
Rhen winced. Just witnessing the sadness on the boy's face was painful.
"To your people?" Rhen asked, trying to cajole the boy, to let him know it was okay to speak about them even though they were gone.
But Jin shook his head, digging his chin farther into his knees.
Rhen backed off, giving him space. He needed time to heal, time to adjust.
So instead, Rhen stood, completed the stretch he had started just before Jin began speaking, and reached for Ember. She walked over to his outstretched hand, rubbing her soft neck into his palm.
Scratching behind her ears, Rhen listened for the contented rumble of a sigh, the sign that she forgave him for needing to be rescued yet again. And there it was, vibrating against his hand. Ember dipped her head down low enough for Rhen to kiss the white patch on her forehead and then stepped to the side.
He undid the straps on the heavy saddle, rubbing down the disrupted hairs and pulling an apple from the pouch. Ember took it happily.
"What is your horse's name?"
"Ember," Rhen answered, not turning around as he peered into the bag again. His red silk shirt was still there, untouched. A pit in his stomach dropped, and Rhen brought his hand quickly to his chest, sighing with relief when he felt the small bump under the roughly woven shirt.
His ring was still there. His unique royal seal. The only thing on his person that truly denoted his birthright. His safeguard.
And the only way to ensure any letter he wrote would go straight to the king.
"Ember…" Jin said in a drawn out breath, "to go with fire?"
At that Rhen did turn, meeting the boy's questioning gaze.
He squinted, trying to read through the silence.
He couldn't know.
Rhen hadn’t touched the fire. He hadn’t breathed it in like his body had begged him to do. And Jin had practically been dead, lying in a hut, when he had drawn the forest flames in.
There was no way the boy could know.
And yet, some intelligence sparked in those dark eyes, some impossible knowledge seemed hidden in their depths.
"Ember," Rhen said slowly, "because her coat is the color of dying flames, and because as a foal she saved my brother from almost certain death by fire."
"It's a girl?" The boy straightened, excited.
"Relax, she's still a horse," Rhen laughed. Jin tilted his head, confused.
Apparently, raunchy jokes were not part of the Arpapajo culture. Something to add to the boy's education, Rhen noted wryly.
Having a traveling companion could be more fun than he expected.
"I'll explain later." He sighed, looking at the tent over Ember's head. "But for right now, we should both sleep."
Rhen stepped forward, lifting the flap of the enclosure.
Yes, he grinned. His prayer had been answered. There was a sleeping mat, not extremely thick, not even very luxurious looking, but still softer than the ground.
He looked back into the night, where Jin now stood scratching Ember's neck. The two were getting along quite nicely, leaving Rhen completely shocked—Ember was normally quite dramatic around other people, a little bit of a princess in a castle made only of princes.
But the sight calmed his nerves too.
Jin was keeping secrets, of that Rhen was certain. And in time, he would uncover them. But for now, it was enough to know that Ember trusted the boy. She was the best judge of character he had ever seen—after all, she almost got sent to the butcher for spitting on the king.
Rhen laughed quietly at the memory. It had been years ago, but his father still referred to Ember as Rhen's damn horse.
He blinked, refocusing on the current night.
"Do you want to sleep in the shelter?" He called out.
"No," Jin shook his head. "Tonight, I want to see the stars."
Rhen shrugged.
He had slept under the stars enough times to know it was not as romantic as it seemed in the stories. No, he thought as he lay down on the mat. Soft cushions were much more awe-inspiring.
As sleep sought to overtake him, Rhen's overactive mind did its best to keep him awake. There was so much left to do. He had to find Cal, he had to get word to the king, and he had to determine if more Ourthuri had disembarked on his lands.
Where were these unflagged ships? How did they go unnoticed? And how could he stop it?
And just as Rhen was on the brink of a breakthrough, the answer surely on the tip of his tongue, a snore sounded on his lips—loud and thunderous enough to be heard in his dreams.
Dark dreams.
Dreams of a future he hoped beyond all hopes to change.
5
JINJI
~ RONINHYTHE ~
They had been traveling for days and all Jinji could think was, Oh the spirits that man is loud. He was loud when he was awake, talking and talking, until even her short answers caused her voice to run hoarse, and she was in awe that he had sound left in his body. He was loud when he slept, drumming thunder into her ears at all hours of the night, keeping even the animals awake.
Loud.
Loud.
Loud.
And all she wanted to do was quiet him for a mere moment. Even Leoa did not talk so incessantly, dragging on and on. Her friend had known when words were no longer needed, were more of a bother than a comfort.
But not this Rhen, this newworlder who had saved her life only to make her die this slow, intolerable death.
At first, it seemed like a purposeful distraction. The farther they moved from the forest, the deeper the pit in her stomach grew and the louder he seemed to become. Every so often, Jinji would catch him watching her, turning his head up to observe her expression as she rode Ember. And for a while, she even appreciated it. The talking kept her from thinking, from missing, from feeling.
Only two days before, she had turned to watch as the treetops disappeared from eyesight, fading into the green grass of a rolling hill, and in that small, seemingly insignificant moment, her home was gone.
Rhen caught her arm as she slipped from the horse, shock numbing her grip. He continued chatting while her breath grew short, her eyes f
illed up, her stomach bundled into knots. She couldn’t recall a word he had said, but he didn’t wait for responses anyway. Instead, he pushed on with words that Jinji barely comprehended, yet were somehow enough help.
But now, he continued, battering her with speech she did not want to hear, and all she wondered was if the distraction were really for him, not her.
"Jin?" Rhen nudged her leg, pointing an elbow deep into her thigh to grab her attention.
She looked down, meeting his wide eyes and preserving her voice.
"Did you hear me? I said you can see the city of Roninhythe on the horizon."
She didn’t wait for him to finish and instead darted her eyes ahead, earning a low chuckle.
Her mouth dropped open—that earned a louder chuckle.
There was a stone Jinji used to climb as a child, all the children did—they would dare each other to stand at the top. She could picture it perfectly, dropped in the middle of the forest, almost like some giant creature had casually discarded it amongst the trees. And Jinji remembered staring at the height she had to overcome to end Janu's taunts, wondering how anything other than a tree could grow so tall.
Even so far in the distance, Jinji's breath caught at the sight of this stone city—a patch of gray rising from the green hills, cutting into the sky, angular and unnatural. Ahead of them, a road—also gray, also unnatural.
She looked at the green below Ember's hooves, at the soft warm way the grass cushioned her feet. What would it feel like to walk on something so unforgiving, so tough? Even dirt after a long hot summer baking in the sun had some give, would eventually soften under her feet.
As if called, the elemental spirits danced into her vision, sparkling along the grass in a faded green hue. Looking up, Rhen was still shrouded in a blanket of hot red fire, sparking and spinning around his person.
Above the city, the wind howled, throwing yellow spirits into spirals, weaving webs out and over the walls, spilling back down to disappear from Jinji's vision. The very sight of so much unchallenged air set her on edge. Where were the green spirits, swooping out of the trees to mix with the breeze? Where was the water, dripping down to be caught by the wind, or the heat of a fire, blazing red?
Where was the balance?
It was unnatural.
Jinji shivered, hugging her arms close, for once listening for the rumble of Rhen's voice.
"That road up ahead, we call it the Great Road, it connects all of the original cities to Rayfort, to the king. It was built over the span of one hundred years. For a century, the punishment for disobeying the law was ten years labor on that road. Many were lucky if they survived, and many more considered themselves unlucky for the same fate. But before you test their craftsmanship, which I assure you is quite awe-inspiring, we must stop."
Rhen tugged on Ember's reins, shushing her sighs with long brushstrokes up and down her neck.
"There is something I have not told you," he said quietly, still looking at Ember. Jinji scrunched her eyebrows, waiting. What could he have possibly left unsaid? She knew more history of the kingdom after a few days with him than she had learned in a lifetime.
"I am not who you think I am."
Her fists clenched, her body suddenly tight. A warm pain started in her heart, surprising her with its sting.
He looked up, green eyes piercing hers, deepening the pain. His lips were drawn in a tight line, struggling with what to say.
He couldn't be…he wouldn't just go…
"My name is not Rhen…"
Jinji held her breath.
"It's Whylrhen. And I was not asked to search the forest by the king, I was actually strictly forbidden from leaving Roninhythe."
He looked away, looked back, shrugged.
Jinji tilted her head, waiting for the words he still held back, the ones he was trying to force out. A chill started in her fingers, traveling up her arms, bringing goose bumps to her skin as she looked out to the city. So unnatural, so unfamiliar—what would she do without a guide? Without a friend?
"You see, well…the king is really my father…that is to say, I'm his son." He bit his lip. "I guess that's the same thing really. But what I'm trying to say is, well—"
"You're a prince?" Jinji finished the sentence for him, her voice higher than normal, alarmed.
He nodded, deflated, letting the air out of his body in one big sigh.
Silence hung between them.
Heavy.
Cold.
Jinji looked behind her, searching for the trees, finding none. No familiarity. No comfort. Her breath shortened.
"Are you leaving me?" She asked, forcing the words out, the fear out, as her throat tightened with panic. What would she do? Alone?
"No," he said quickly, putting his hand on her shoulder, squeezing it once. "Of course not, no, Jin, I would never do that to you—not after—you're just a kid. I'm telling you because you deserve to know."
He reached past her into the saddlebag behind her thigh and pulled out a bright red cloth.
Just like the fire spirits, she thought.
"Will you?" He asked, handing it to her.
Jinji reached out, grasping the material. It was soft, thin. She rolled it between her fingers, amazed. Her own clothes, Janu's skins that she still wore, felt coarse in comparison.
Holding it aloft, Jinji realized it was a shirt. Golden threads, the color of the sun on a clear day, were woven through the sleeves. Glittering stones caught her attention and she brought the spot close, gasping at how crystal clear the rocks were.
"Here," he said, tugging on the material, pulling it over his bare chest and handing her the shirt he had just removed. "You might want that."
Jinji looked at the dull brown cloth in her hands, damp with sweat, and wrinkled her nose.
"Why?" She questioned, looking up.
He raised his brows, grinning. A golden speck glistened in his grassy eye, calculating, reflecting some idea sparking in his head.
He shrugged, and it disappeared, decision made. "Never mind," he said, his voice too light, his lips too upturned. He grabbed the shirt, but Jinji held on.
"No, I will wear it," she said, now nervous. He was far too pleased with himself—far too silent.
Shaking his head, Rhen pulled hard, and the shirt slipped from her grasp. In one swift move, he ripped it down the middle, dropping the remains at his feet.
"You know," he said, "in the kingdom you must bow before royalty, on penalty of death. Did the emissary forget to mention that?"
He looked back, smirking.
Jinji slapped the only part of him within reach, his head.
"Hey," he said as he rubbed the spot with his hand, "that actually is punishable by death." He continued massaging his scalp. "For a little thing, you have a good arm. You'll be a good swordsman. I can teach you, you know. I always wanted," he coughed, clearing his throat and looking back to the city. Softer this time, he finished, "I always wanted a little brother to teach…" Rhen looked over his shoulder again, devilish grin back. "But I suppose you'll do, little Jin."
"I'm not so little," Jinji retorted, still unused to being referred to as a boy. Especially by a man who was no more than a few years older than she. "Perhaps you are too large."
Rhen barked out a laugh, loud and sudden, almost echoing on the wind. "No such thing, Jin, no such thing. Just ask the whores."
"Whores?" Jinji didn’t recognize the word.
Rhen shook his head, walking forward toward the road in the distance. "You have so much to learn but…" He tugged on the leather straps, prodding Ember along. "I think I'll enjoy teaching you. Tonight, after the docks, we'll go to the Staggering Vixen, I know a girl named Martha who would love to meet you."
He turned, winked.
A blush rose on Jinji's cheeks as realization hit. Her father had mentioned these women, one of many reasons he forbade her from visiting the stone cities.
"The docks?" She asked, changing the subject, trying to erase it from her thoughts
. The Staggering Vixen? She was certain that was not a place she wanted to visit.
Ever.
Jinji looked at the looming city again, swallowing a gulp. It was large, probably full of more people than she could imagine. Maybe she would find a new guide…one not so focused on her education…a woman, maybe.
"We need a ship," Rhen said, interrupting her thoughts.
"Why?"
"How else will we travel to the Golden Isles?"
"Across the sea?" She asked, turning her gaze sharply on him. The wide waters, the great blue expanse, she had only seen it once while traveling with Janu. They had snuck away from the village, exploring, and after two days of walking, they had reached the edge of the forest, the edge of the world. Jinji could still feel the breeze brush her cheeks, could still feel the warmth of Janu's hand as the two of them stood, toes inches over the rock, looking down, down, down toward crashing waves.
Her fingers tightened on the saddle, rubbing harshly against the leather.
"We need to figure out what those Ourthuri were doing here, and there's no better way than stopping in to say hello to their king."
A new guide, Jinji sighed, rubbing her eyes.
She needed to find a new guide.
"I'm going to show you the world, Jin. It's a lot bigger than you realize."
That's what I'm afraid of, Jinji thought and tried to relax in her seat. But the city still loomed ahead, growing larger and larger with each step they took, and it was growing harder to understand if leaving the forest would be any help at all.
Would the shadow still find her behind those tall stonewalls? Would it continue to haunt her? Or would she be discarded, left to live alone, always questioning why and how? Was she traveling toward answers or away from them?
Clicking noises drew Jinji from her thoughts. They had reached the road.
Ahead, she saw travelers scurrying to the side, hastily shifting their horses and possessions to make way. As they walked by, Rhen nodded from side to side, but the people were not looking. Their eyes were downcast. Their entire bodies seemed to bend toward the ground. Only the children dared look up, and it was not at Rhen.
The Shadow Soul (A Dance of Dragons) Page 6
