by Tom Hansen
Ynya nodded. “It’s understandable. So, what are we going to do to get out of here?”
Silence.
She turned, meeting each set of eyes. She saw it then, the lack of fight in any of them.
“Six mages in a room and none of us can come up with a way to get out of here? There is only one of them out there, right? The woman with the black leather dress?”
Three of them shook their heads while two more turned away.
“There is the woman in white.”
“And the man in red.”
“And the twins.”
“The twins?” Ynya asked.
Everyone grew silent.
“All right, so no one wants to talk about the twins, but we still can get out of here, can’t we?”
The girl stood. “If you try to use your magic in here, it will alert the Skarmyord and they will punish you for it. It’s…it’s not pleasant. Worse than what you just went through.” She looked down at her feet, a solemn look on her face. “I’m Joanne, by the way.”
Ynya smiled, but the girl never met her gaze long enough to notice.
Something had happened to that girl. She once had the spark of hope, but it had been taken out of her by those horrible people out there.
More rage boiled to the surface, but Ynya tamped it back down. She shouldn’t test her cage quite yet.
She turned to study the environment she was in. The cell was large, allowing six to eight people to sit on the bench along the back wall. A single torch on the wall shed enough light to navigate the short hallway.
The hallway ended in a solid iron door, with three other barred cells in the room.
There wasn’t much to go off of, but it looked like if she figured out how to get the bars melted for this cell, Ynya might be able to get everyone into the hallway and prepared for when the guards came. As long as they could use the magic in the hallway, they would be fine.
“Well, if you’re not going to do something, I’m going to do it.”
She poured heat into the bars.
Chapter Twenty-Three
The steel door at the end of the hallway slammed open, and the woman in black strode in.
“Ynya Oblique, are we going to have any issues here?”
Ynya removed her hands from the barely heated metal.
Damn, that was too fast. There is no way she was just waiting outside the room to come bursting in, was she?
The woman stopped just outside of the cell, so close that her clothes brushed the outside of the bars. She brandished the silver blade once again, twirling it in her hands. “You may want to take a step back unless I decide I want to use this on you again.”
Ynya took a step forward. Audible gasps filled the cell, the prisoners shocked that someone stood up to the guards here. Ynya didn’t care. Staying in here and giving up to tyranny was the only way to lose. As long as she stood her ground, she was winning.
The woman paused for a moment, then smiled. Her teeth were perfectly straight and white, something Ynya hadn’t noticed before.
“How many tents burned down?” Ynya asked, winking at the woman who was an inch shorter than her.
The woman’s eyebrows twitched. She spun the blade once more and it disappeared in a flash under one of her leather flaps.
“Too many. You impress me, Ynya Oblique. I sense powerful magic in you, but I’m unable to pinpoint exactly what type. Normally this comes quite easy for me, but with you, it’s an enigma.”
She cocked her head to the side to look at the metal where Ynya’s hands had just been. Her eyes flicked to Ynya’s for a moment before she spun and spoke.
“It’s no matter. Once you go to Reyoarfjell, we will know more about you than you do yourself.”
“Oh yeah, how so?”
The woman waved her hand across the whole cell. “You all have what, one, possibly two powers? Heat, cold, wind, maybe even earth magic? Our interrogators at Reyoarfjell have the ability to find out powers you didn’t know you had.”
The room turned silent.
“You didn’t know this? And here you thought hedge witches wielded two kinds of powers, three at the most?” She clucked her tongue while taking a step, her tight leather clothes creaking as she walked.
“Oh no, you have so, so much more to give to your Queen, and she has figured out how to take it; she has figured out how you can best serve her. You will be molded, shaped, and changed into whatever she needs you to be.”
She stopped pacing and moved so fast Ynya could swear she teleported. “But you, Ynya. You are special, and I suspect your sister is special, too.”
Ynya tensed. She was the only one of her family, other than her mother, who had any magic. At least her two younger sisters hadn’t shown any magic yet.
The woman smiled. “I can hear your brain trying to puzzle things out, trying to come up with reasons why I would be speaking about this. You see, magic is usually passed down through bloodlines, mother to daughter, father to son. Rarely, if the stars align, and the moon is just right, a baby can be born with magic, thus starting a new bloodline.
“So I have to wonder, Ynya Oblique, does your sister have magic?”
“My sister?”
The woman pouted. “Don’t think I don’t know about the little arrangement your brother-in-law’s family has with Her Majesty.”
“My sister doesn’t have magic.”
“Hmm.” The reply was a high-pitched sound, almost like a mouse squeak.
Ynya’s blood boiled once again. She was sick of these games. She wanted to burn something. She wanted to punch this woman in the face.
Instead she chose to verbally jab, and the words just poured out of her. “You know who did have magic? My mother, but your soldiers didn’t capture her for the Queen, oh no. They had other plans, plans of their own.” Ynya grabbed the bars in front of her, pouring heat into them so fast they began to glow.
“They stabbed her to death so she bled out in the snow, then proceeded to rape her corpse. They didn't even try to capture her for the glory of your precious Frost Queen, they slaughtered her. Your troops are so stupid and undisciplined that they overlooked the only other mage in the entire village because they were too bloodthirsty to know better.”
The woman leaned forward, her forehead nearly fitting between the bars. Her voice was low and careful. “Careful, Ynya, or I might have to make an example of you. You know I can’t look weak in front of the prisoners.”
Ynya released her grasp of the bars. Terrified gasps came from the rest of the cell. She only hoped it breathed some semblance of fight in them. She needed their help if she was going to get out of this place.
The woman in leather pursed her lips, a slight look of concern on her face. Wrinkled formed on her forehead. “So your mother is dead? That should not have happened.”
“What, the murder or the rape? Or do your soldiers even know the difference?”
She received an angry glare in reply.
Good. I’m getting to her.
The woman spoke, but her voice was strained, like she was holding back from saying what she truly felt. “It will be investigated and punished, I assure you.”
She spun. “Guards!”
The door at the end of the hall slammed open once again and two burly soldiers stepped in. “Captain Nora?”
“Prepare for departure. We leave at first light.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Oh, and take the sister along. If this one has magic, there is a chance the sister has it as well. They will find out.”
Ynya opened her mouth to speak but the woman rushed at her in a blur and stabbed her three more times with the silver blade. “Uh uh uh, little girl. You need to learn your place, and your place is not to speak right now.”
Ynya crumpled to the floor, hitting her head against the bars on the way down.
“Pleasant dreams.”
The woman walked down the hall and slammed the iron door at the end.
As the metal
lic sound echoed through the room, Ynya realized her mistake once again. She’d given too much away. The remark about her mother now meant that her sister would be taken. Her effort to show how strong and capable she was backfired once again, but this time it didn’t just affect her own safety, now it affected her sister, and the baby.
All Ynya had to do was keep her mouth shut and they would have left without Synol. She slumped to the floor, all the heat and rage dissipating and replaced with regret.
Smoke, not fire.
Tears poured down her face at her mistake. “I’m sorry, Synol.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Ynya fell asleep on the floor.
She dreamed of coming back to her village, finding her sister, bleeding on the ground in the same location her mama had died. Blood pooled between Synol’s legs. Her tears were the only thing that moved, falling to the ground with a splash, the rest of the world frozen in time.
Ynya woke with a start when the guard clanged his wooden baton on the hard metal bars.
“Up and at ‘em! We’re taking you north.”
The woman in black, Captain Nora, watched with mild ambivalence as the prisoners were loaded into the back of a metal barred wagon. The top and bottom were thick wood, so setting them on fire would do nothing but burn up the rest of the group inside her wagon.
Ynya didn’t feel like fighting this morning. She complied, falling into line with the rest of the captured mages and shuffling along in arm and leg irons.
As she passed by Captain Nora, the woman in black scoffed, reminding Ynya of her place and how easy it was to manipulate her into giving her the exact information she came to seek.
All six mages shuffled into the cart, and the soldiers bolted a thick door of bars behind them.
Captain Nora addressed the entire wagon while her uncomfortable gaze never left Ynya. “I trust you all will be obedient on our journey. I would hate to have to get angry.”
One of the guards banged on the bars twice, and the wagon lurched forward.
They met with other wagons in the town square, one of which held a half dozen kids and an old woman with burned eyes.
“Oh no.” Ynya’s heart broke as she watched the kids holding onto the bars, their dirty faces filling up the space between the metal.
“What?” Joanne asked.
“I know those kids, I know that woman. She helped hide me for a few days. I don’t know how they got caught.” A thought entered her mind. “I hope it wasn’t something I did.”
Ynya looked over at the wagon, catching the eye of one of the kids. She mouthed ‘I’m sorry’ but the little boy simply stared back, a blank expression like he’d already given up.
Her life had gone from amazing to terrifying in just a few days, but now it was even worse. She’d spent a scant few hours with anyone in this town and already everyone she’d met was being taken by the soldiers to Reyoarfjell.
She looked up at the looming manor of the Torkelsen Estate as two barn doors at the base opened up.
From underneath, a covered wagon trotted out, followed by Stefan on horseback.
“Do you know what that’s about?” Firtz asked her.
“It’s my sister. They are taking her too.”
There didn’t seem to be any bars on the windows, and the door to the wagon wasn’t locked. Ynya hoped her sister wasn’t in irons because of her. Ynya might have gotten her captured, but she hoped she didn’t get her sister tortured. Ynya wouldn’t be able to forgive herself if Synol were harmed because of her actions.
The caravan stopped for a while at the camp north of town.
Along the way, Ynya got to know the other mages in the wagon. Hans and Joanne were both in their twenties and had grown up around this area.
Firtz had been a blacksmith his entire life and swore up and down he didn’t know magic, but she didn’t miss the wink and smile he gave her as he insisted he was innocently abducted.
Tyrain, a twelve-year-old boy, had accidentally sneezed one day at dinner, causing a gust of wind to lift all dresses in the entire hall over the women’s heads.
“I swear I wasn’t trying to do that!” But all the men chuckled anyway.
At least spirits are slightly up. It is something.
Midway through the day, they stopped again, and everyone was let out to stretch their legs while the soldiers prepared a broth-like meal for everyone to drink.
The woman in black was nowhere to be found.
“Hey, where did she go?” asked Ynya.
Joanne sidled up to her and spoke in a low voice. “I saw her veer off at the encampment to one of the tents. I don’t think she joined back up with us after that.”
“You cannot already be thinking about escape?” Hans asked.
“I just want to know where she is. The rest of us can take any of the guards, but she’s the one to watch out for. If she’s gone for even a couple of hours, we might be able to get out of here, and more importantly, get those kids out of here. It’s my fault they are here, I have to help them escape.”
Hans kicked at a small mound of snow. “I don’t think we should be doing this.”
Joanne whirled on him. “I know we shouldn’t be doing this, but here we are. You’ve heard the stories of what happens to mages at Reyoarfjell. I’d rather die in the snow then be taken there and dissected.”
Ynya nodded, as did others.
Hans sighed. “I hear if you cooperate, they go lenient on you, and give you a solid job with meals and lodging.”
Ynya jutted her chin at the wagon full of non-magical children. “What about them? None of them have magic, but since they’re all siblings to someone who does, or kids of parents, they’re going to be tortured until some magic comes out.”
So will Synol.
“I can’t allow that to happen, I just can’t. If you want to stay back, I won’t fault you. I will go at this alone, but if any of you are willing, I could use the help.”
Firtz spoke up, reluctant to admit his magical talent out loud. “I can heat up the metal just like you, lass.”
“Good. Do you think we can get rid of these shackles without burning anyone here?”
Hans sighed, clearly exasperated at the conversation. “I can keep our wrists from building up too much heat.”
“Frost mage?”
“No, but I can create barriers that prevent things from passing, so I can keep the heat from getting to people’s skin and burning them.”
“If we do this now, before they put us back into the wagon, we’re going to have a better shot of it.” Ynya caught the gaze of every mage there. “We all ready?”
She got an affirmative nod from everyone but Hans, who finally rolled his eyes and agreed.
Ynya and the blacksmith poured massive amounts of heat into their own shackles. The smell of hot metal filled the wagon, as if they forged weapons to gain their freedom.
Chapter Twenty-Five
“Guard!” Joanne hissed.
All the mages huddled together close to the back of the wagon, forming a wall around Ynya and Firtz so they could continue working their magic.
The guard eyed the group of mages huddled around each other. “You lot about done here?”
Joanne nodded. “Yeah, but I think my shackles are starting to come loose here. You better check them.”
He looked at her suspiciously.
She laughed. “What are you afraid of? If any of us try anything, that scary black-haired bitch is going to be on us in a second, right? We learned our lesson after watching red-hair over here mouth off to her. Right, all?”
The rest of the mages nodded. Ynya’s shackles softened. If she pulled right now she could stretch them out, but she required more room and would probably be noticed. They needed to get rid of the guard.
Instead, he walked closer. “Yeah, that’s a lesson you all better learn early right? There is nowhere you can be safe. She’s always watching.”
Joanne held out her hands and shook them. “See?”
Interestingly enough, her hands did seem abnormally small in those cuffs. Just as the guard got up to her, she yanked her hands out of the cuffs and clapped him on the head, just as Hans projected a barrier around the man’s mouth to dampen any noise.
Ynya’s shackles fell to the ground, and she turned to free Hans from his.
Joanne grabbed the key just as the blacksmith finished getting his off and unlocked more.
With all of them freed, the mages took up defensive positions behind the wagon to scope out the soldiers.
“Three up above patrolling, one behind, and two are putting away the food. We don’t have much time.” Joanne said.
Ynya nodded. “We have enough for everyone to take out one guard each. Then we can use the caravan to get everyone here to safety. We’re going to need to coordinate attacks though, take them by surprise as much as we can all at once so they can’t call for reinforcements.”
“Well, thank you much for the help, ladies, but I’m going my own way.” Hans took a step to the north.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Ynya asked.
He stopped and turned. “I didn’t want to go along with this plan, but the plan has been executed, regardless. I wish nothing but good luck to you, but I’m saving myself.”
The boy Tyrain spoke up. “I’m going with him as well.”
Two more nods came from the group of mages.
Ynya felt her blood boil once again. “Are you kidding me? I just helped you all escape, and you can’t spare one minute to help us take out the rest of the guards?”
Hans shrugged. “I appreciate the help, but running is the only thing you can do. Start and never stop. I might need that minute.” He clapped Tyrain on the shoulder. “Let’s go.”
The two mages ran, followed by two more of the small group.
Ynya, Firtz, and Joanne watched them go before Joanne shrugged and turned toward the camp.
“We could still take out the guards, but it’s going to be a bit of a struggle.”
