“Don’t pick a fight with me, young one.”
She recognized King Ryanth’s voice. Ashayna passed through the door and saw Councilor Tav first. Then she saw the lupwyn king holding Sorntar pinned against a wall. Though held immobile by the lupwyn, it didn’t stop Sorntar from venting his anger.
“You had no right! My mother would never sanction this. You went against council. Let me go. She could be dying! Should any harm come to her, ally or no I will…” Sorntar stilled his accusations when he looked over the lupwyn’s shoulder. “Ashayna?” The one word conveyed his concern.
“Please release Sorntar.” Her throat thickened with the threat of tears she refused to allow to fall. King Ryanth released Sorntar, but still stood in front of him, blocking Sorntar with his greater bulk.
“Show me,” the lupwyn said.
She shoved her hands out, nearly under his muzzle, and waited. He studied her hands for long moments.
Councilor Tav leaned forward to inspect both palms, then inclined his head to the lupwyn, and received a short nod. Tav turned back to Ashayna. “Unlace your vest and shirt.”
She’d expected a number of questions, but that wasn’t one of them. “Not for your asking.”
Tav cleared his throat and tilted his head in her direction. “We must see if you now show the Mark. In the past, it has always been above the heart.”
“Perhaps if you ordered people around less, they’d like you better.” Ashayna balanced on the balls of her feet, waiting for one of them to make a move. She didn’t care what happened next, or what they threatened her with. She was exhausted, bruised, battered, and generally in a foul mood. “The answer’s still no. I think I’d know if a brand suddenly appeared on my breast. The other burned worse than embers straight from a fire.” Ashayna followed Tav with her eyes as he stepped in her direction.
“Get away from her!” Sorntar’s bellow ended in a raptor’s scream of rage. He smashed an elbow into King Ryanth’s stomach and launched himself at Tav. Sorntar didn’t reach his target. Ryanth leaped forward, and, grabbing Sorntar’s wings, flipped him over onto his back. The lupwyn landed on top.
“Youngling, did no one ever tell you to respect your elders?” The lupwyn grunted, fending off Sorntar’s talons.
“Sorntar, stop,” she said as she pulled at her vest’s laces, and then the linen shirt underneath.
Ryanth stood, pulling Sorntar up with him, but he retained his grip on the phoenix. Sorntar remained motionless, watching the others with a blazing fury until she caught his eye.
“It’s all right, Sorntar,” she said, and then broke his gaze to glare at the lupwyn while she held the shirt open wider. “Now, if everything meets your approval, we’ll be leaving.”
The lupwyn leaned forward, flicked his gaze over the area once, and then politely nodded his head. Tav took a step closer, raised his hand and pointed a talon at her heart.
“If that talon comes any closer, I’ll break it off.” Ashayna flashed a smile full of teeth.
Tav folded his talons and bowed his head. “You have passed the test. I am sorry you had to undergo it, yet it was necessary.”
The lupwyn king bowed his head as well. “I hope you understand why we needed to do as we did. If the Twelve were again to roam the land, I would prefer to be prepared for what would ride the winds of war with them.”
Ryanth released Sorntar. Her bondmate leaped to her side and mantled his wings around her body.
Tav and Ryanth bowed again and left.
Sorntar stood stiffly, wings still mantled around her. He’d turned his head to one side, giving her some semblance of privacy.
“We need to talk, but I don’t want to speak of it here,” Ashayna said. She tried to lace her vest. A task made more difficult by her shaking hands and the tears overflowing her eyes.
“Ash.” His inner turmoil resolved, he took her in a stiff embrace.
Fighting back sobs, she returned his awkward hug. She didn’t know where to put her arms, but settled for tucking them under his wings where they joined to his back. The soft feathers tickled and she fought a surprising urge to stroke them. Sorntar’s posture relaxed, and he pulled her more firmly against his chest. His arms tightened around her shoulders. He rubbed his cheek against the crown of her head, and then buried his face in her hair, exhaling warm breath against her neck. One hand dropped lower to rub the small of her back in slow gentle circles. “Ash, you’re safe now.”
Locked in the circle of his arms, with his wings mantled around her, she did feel safe for the first time in a very long time. And yet, with her ear pressed to his chest, listening to the throb of his powerful hearts, his hand stroking her back, she also felt a strange sort of vulnerability, too. His pleasant, masculine scent surrounded her, slowly seeping into her lungs with each breath, and with it came understanding. She felt feminine within the big phoenix’s arms.
Off-balance, her emotions in a riot, she stiffened.
Sorntar shifted slightly, but didn’t let her go. “Come, we’ll go somewhere you can rest.” His voice rumbled over her head, echoing with remnants of his rage, and perhaps another emotion she wasn’t ready to examine too much. He pulled back enough to straighten her shirt and then he began to lace her vest back together. Her breath hitched at the strangely intimate gesture.
When everything was in place, he tugged her back against his side.
Just this once, she thought. After all that’s happened, I can be weak this once. With a sigh, she rested her forehead against his chest. “I’m not going to run and hide. We should at least put in an appearance at weapons class.” Talking into his chest was awkward, but she didn’t pull away. She wasn’t certain she could stand on her own. “They’ll likely believe I got lost again and you’ve been looking for me this whole time and only now found me.”
He pushed her to arm’s length, his astute gaze sweeping over her. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but you look more recovered now. If you had seen yourself in a mirror…”
“Yes, it…was…unpleasant.” She remembered the feel of her soul sundering. Her throat closed tight.
They didn’t speak again until they’d left the chamber and went out under the sun’s reassuring warmth. Still, it didn’t come easy, dragging those memories up to the forefront of her mind, having to explain what she’d seen. He listened with great patience, never interrupting, even though she could feel his need to question in more depth. She even warned him about Lylantra. Finally, after she had told everything, she put her true fear into words. “What do you think it all means? Does it mean what I think it does?”
“That you killed me in the past? Doubtful. The Tower shows both your greatest fears as well as your weaknesses. Your greatest fear is failure, to fail in your duty.” He mulled over his thoughts aloud. “The last great failure the Twelve suffered is likely the worst thing you could perceive. You feared you were the Destroyer and could fail like that again. The Tower took your innermost fear and made it real so you would be forced to overcome it. However, it does not mean we are those wretched two….besides, you’ve been tested twice. You’re not the Destroyer.”
His words were plausible, if put together in desperation on his part. So she told him about the shadow on the other palm. He had no words of comfort for that.
“You didn’t fail,” Sorntar said. “That’s enough. Still, I think it wise to learn more about all this. I don’t know who on the council we can trust, including my parents. My mother is more likely to withhold information than to share it with us, and we might find ourselves questioned, thoroughly.” Sorntar fell silent as they passed another phoenix wearing a messenger’s satchel. When she was out of hearing range, he continued. “Put it out of your mind if you can. We can worry later, after we’ve studied some of the ancient writings.”
“I’ll try, but I doubt I’ll be able to forget there was a third person present and I might not learn her identity.”
“A troubling thought,” he agreed. “However, no matter how muc
h I would like to find out who else means you harm, I think we need to find answers. The library is the best place to start.”
“But when will we find time to research this problem? We can’t surround ourselves with books and go into hiding without causing more suspicion.”
“Five days hence is one of the scheduled relaxation times, when we are free to do as we wish. If anyone notices us gone, they will think I’ve taken you hunting or some such.”
“I’ll try not to get kidnapped before then.” Ashayna couldn’t shake the nagging fear as she gazed at him. Deep within her heart, she wondered if what she’d seen could so readily be explained away.
Sorntar grunted in answer, obviously not finding her jest particularly humorous.
Chapter Twelve
The quiet of night descended, marking the end of another day that seemed long to Sorntar’s reckoning. Sadly, this night promised to be no more relaxing than the last three sleepless ones. Since Ashayna’s ordeal with the Oracle Tower, he’d done all in his power to appear as if nothing was wrong—a difficult feat with his concentration in shambles. Only luck kept his friends or instructors from noticing his distracted state. Perhaps they put it off to his awakening Larnkin, or his infatuation with Ashayna.
There was one bit of good news. His Larnkin had returned to sleep. Sorntar thanked both the God and the Goddess for that. Still, all was not peaceful. Hence the reason he was lurking outside Ashayna’s rooms, perched on a bench, hidden in an alcove between two pillars.
To anyone looking down the hall, he wasn’t visible. Sorntar hoped no one decided to come down this particular corridor tonight since he didn’t trust magic under the circumstances. Besides, it would make it more complicated if he had to explain he didn’t trust his own Larnkin or the Elders. So he waited and watched, trusting the shadows to hide him.
Ashayna’s joke about being kidnapped a second time had him guarding her door each night. While a second abduction was unlikely, the nagging worry was enough to keep him on edge. Never again did he want to experience the despair he’d felt when his Larnkin had tracked her to the Oracle’s Tower.
When he had first seen Ashayna emerge from the Tower, her face seemed sunken, almost aged, and her eyes—he shuddered at the memory. They were bruise-dark with horror. Then with dignity, she’d gathered her pride and straightened to extend her hands out to the lupwyn, challenging him with a sharp look to say anything. Seeing what she held out toward King Ryanth, Sorntar had been struck speechless. Etched into her palm was a leader’s symbol, marking her as a natural-born ruler, pre-ordained to follow that path.
As he had hoped, Ashayna would become a ruling queen, not just his consort, when he took the throne in some vague and distant future. His bondmate, his queen, his equal. Those thoughts had warmed him the last three nights.
The swish of feathers and clicking of talons against stone announced the immediate arrival of one of his race. He unsheathed his dagger, idly testing the sharpness of its tip.
Kandarra appeared around a branch in the corridor and proceeded directly to Ashayna’s door. She reached into a satchel slung over one shoulder and pulled out a ribbon-wrapped package. Sorntar sheathed his dagger and slipped up behind his sister.
“A little late, isn’t it?”
She dropped her bundle and spun around in surprise. Expelling a ragged breath, she growled, “Next time, say something!”
“I did.” Sorntar challenged her with a look.
“Before you’re breathing down my neck, idiot.” Kandarra jabbed a finger into his chest to emphasize her point.
“Insult me later. What exactly are you doing?”
Kandarra studied him with a narrow-eyed look. Perhaps taking in his thin-lipped expression and edgy stance, her demeanor softened. “I was just bringing Ashayna some Moonbane for her hair.”
“Flowers?” His hand crept towards his dagger again. “Ashayna asked you for flowers?”
“She didn’t actually ask for them, but I saw how she admired the way some of us wear them woven into their manes and crests. I thought since Ashayna no longer needs to adhere to the restrictions as she did among the humans, she might like some ornaments for her hair.” She paused, and then added with a liberal dose of sarcasm, “I also brought some clips and other things, if they meet with your approval.”
“Why bring them now?” he countered.
“Because they have the loveliest scent of any night-blooming flower. They’re newly picked. I just placed a weaving upon them so they’ll remain fresh for a few days.” His sister glowered at him a second time for good measure. “With your permission, I’ll leave them here so she can get them in the morning. I even left a note so she’d know who they’re from. We wouldn’t want her to come hunting you in revenge if she mistook them for a love token.”
Sorntar grunted. He would not feel foolish, not for protecting his bondmate. Idly he wondered if he should reveal what he knew. Uncertainty stilled his tongue.
“So tell me, brother, why are you guarding Ashayna’s door?” Her expression shifted to one of worry. “Has something else happened? A few days ago, when you said Ashayna had gotten lost, I thought you were hiding something, and then Vinarah was late as well.”
“You could say that. Don’t mention it to anyone else. We have it well in hand.”
“Yes, that’s why you’re encamped in front of Ashayna’s door.” Kandarra arched a feathered brow at him. “She doesn’t know, does she?”
“No,” he said. “I’m here in case anyone else may have a grudge against a human with power. You said Vinarah was late. Which lesson?”
“Weapons, the one you and Ashayna neglected. Vinarah missed weapons warm-ups and had to partner with Caltanwyn.” Kandarra smiled. “She told me she had forgotten her throwing knives and went back for them.”
“Thank you. I’m sorry if I was abrupt.”
“Hmm, abrupt. I can think of another word for it.” She hugged him.
After she released him, he watched her until she vanished back down the tunnel. Before he returned to his perch, he gave the flowers one fleeting probe with his power. They were nothing more than Kandarra claimed.
***
“Remind me to thank Kandarra for the flowers.”
The sound of Ashayna’s voice jarred him awake, and the corridor swam into focus. Ashayna stood in front of him, a wing-length away, watching him. Sorntar couldn’t move or speak for a full five heartbeats, while his Larnkin slid back deep within, returning to its slumber. The sensation of his consciousness and the ancient Larnkin slipping past each other, like two strangers brushing shoulders in a narrow passage, caused a shudder to ripple down his wings.
He wasn’t sure which he was more concerned about: that his Larnkin felt the danger to Ashayna was great enough to warrant close watch, or that it was skilled enough to control his body while he slept.
“You’ll need to mask your emotions better if you’re going to be king one day,” Ashayna said, her expression sympathetic. “Besides, I saw your magic flare before you got it under control.”
He held his tongue, not sure how much to tell.
“That’s something I understand. To lose control. Your life no longer completely your own. To have magic raging—when a moment before there had been nothing—then gone again just as suddenly.” Ashayna began to laugh with a sharp-edged quality. “Ha! You call it Larnkin. Gods, your people even welcome it.” She shook her head and flicked her braid back over her shoulder. “Well, as far as I’m concerned, your fear proves you’re the only one with a bit of sense.”
Sorntar recovered enough to speak. “While there are times being host to a Larnkin can be uncomfortable, you should not fear them. They are divine, sent by the God and Goddess to guide us.”
“Don’t say the words unless you believe them.” She exhaled loudly. “Sorry. I didn’t intend to get into a debate. What will today’s lessons be? More weapons practice, history lessons, or the ritual abuse of trying to summon my magic?”
So
rntar laughed, surprising himself. There was no doubt what Ashayna preferred. “I believe Caltanwyn wishes to see us in the practice yard again today, our history lesson will wait another day, but some magic practice is expected.”
“I hate magic.”
***
Ashayna stifled a yawn. Sorntar glared at her, but she didn’t look up at him, her gaze fixed upon the ground a hand’s span from where she sat cross-legged. Her jaw flexed as she fought off another yawn. He might have felt pity for her if he hadn’t been up the last four nights in a row. Blinking to clear his vision, Sorntar looked outside the small circle of wardstones. Most other mentors and apprentices had retired for the night.
“Concentrate.”
“I am,” Ashayna snapped.
“On what, sleeping?”
Her eyebrow arched up in warning.
He wasn’t intimidated. Instead he reached out and picked up a blindfold lying between them. Tossing it at her, she snatched it out of the air. “Try the blindfold again. You did better with it last time. Without visual distractions, maybe it will force you to concentrate on communication with your Larnkin.”
“It doesn’t seem interested in talking,” Ashayna said. “Or maybe it’s just not ready.”
Sorntar sighed.
“I’ll try. That’s all I can promise.” Ashayna tied the cloth over her eyes.
“Good. Now relax, breathe deep. Reach within.” Sorntar threaded a hint of hypnotic magic into his words. Echoing his own commands, he closed his eyes and breathed deeply, matching her. “You can feel your magic, your Larnkin within you. Her spirit burning clear and bright, near-limitless power. Eternal.”
“I…yes, it’s there. Just out of my reach.”
“She. Your Larnkin is the female half to mine. You may not know her name, but I doubt she appreciates being called ‘it,’” Sorntar said. “Ask her to grant you the use of your power. Focus your intentions so she may understand.”
In Deception's Shadow Box Set: Book 1-3 Page 14
