Court of Flame

by Miranda Martin

"Emberich has no reason to think we've recruited dragons, not when he isn't attacking you directly," I said slowly, looking at Ashur. "If a dragon were to fly near the border but not over it, close to the capital, the patrol might not think twice about it. It's a neutral area and there's all kinds of traffic through it. If any of us went in phoenix form or in a car, that would warrant much more suspicion.”

  "Sure. I can carry anyone you need," he said readily. "There's a path my dragons use quite regularly. I won't even look out of place."

  "Perfect," I said. But then I frowned. "Emberich will have everyone on high alert. How will we cross the border without being spotted? You can't pass without being noticed and a car will definitely be spotted..."

  I sincerely doubted Emberich would treat any invaders with kid gloves. Including me, even with the bounty on my head. He was a kill now, ask questions later kind of person.

  "On foot."

  "What?" I asked reflexively, turning to regard Jacob next to me. These were the first words he’d spoken.

  "On foot," he repeated, uncrossing his arms and straightening from the wall. "You won't be spotted that way. If Ashur can get us near the border, we can make the rest of the trek on foot under the cover of night."

  "We?" I repeated.

  "Yes," Jacob confirmed. "We. I want to help too. I like Sven. And I'm not so short-sighted as to think that leaving Emberich in charge will be good for anyone, including humans."

  "Are you sure?" I asked.

  "I am."

  "But are you sure you won't be spotted?" Amna asked, appearing more than a little skeptical. "You can't just walk in."

  "Sure we can," Jacob refuted with a slow smile. "I've gone a lot places I wasn't supposed to go simply by walking in. Including phoenix and dragon territories." Hmm. That was something to think about later. I could see Ashur shelving the same thought. "The amount of space the sentries have to cover will already push things in our favor. There can’t be many of them, if their side is attacking different towns at the same time. All of you dragons and phoenixes tend to think of threats as coming from the air rather than the ground. Leaves you with a bit of a blind spot sometimes. With just two people, I know I can get us across the desert and into the city without a problem. Ashur just needs to get us close enough to the border that we make it to the capital with enough time before sunrise. With no cover, we'll need the dark."

  Ashur nodded thoughtfully. "I can get you close," he reassured Jacob.

  "I will go with Jacob," Reelin volunteered immediately.

  "I can go as well," Amna offered.

  "I'm going," I countered firmly, making my guards jerk their heads over to me in surprise and dismay. "That might be your King being held, but he's more than that to me. Much more," I added quietly. "And this isn't a combat mission. If all goes well, we'll be in and out without seeing anyone."

  The keywords there were "if all goes well". But I was the one taking the risk here. Jacob was necessary for his expertise, but Amna and Reelin were not. If things really went south, it wouldn't matter if it was me or one of them. We'd be swarmed by Emberich's guards and we'd have no chance.

  "Adara—Consort—be reasonable," Reelin pleaded, shaking his head. "We need you to stay safe. If they have both you and Sven..."

  "I am being reasonable," I retorted. "I'm not risking anyone else. This isn't up for negotiation. If we're caught, you guys are going to have to find another plan," I warned.

  "I've already brought the issue up with the other skeins," Ashur said grimly. "They aren't ready to get involved. Not yet."

  That wasn't unexpected. And I understood. Everyone needed to take care of their own people first.

  "Why can't more of us go with you then?" Reelin tried, switching gears. "I do not like this."

  Amna murmured her agreement.

  Jacob was the one who refused this time. "Two will be a lot easier to get in and out," he explained. "Both across the desert and through the city. We'll have more success with the fewest people. I would go alone, but I don't know what shape Sven is going to be in, and I'm not familiar with the city."

  Reelin and Amna argued with me, the other guards chiming in here and there. But no matter which way we looked at things, this plan seemed to have the most possibility of success. Meaning, there was maybe a fifteen-to-twenty-percent chance of success —if I were being generous.

  Maybe it was best not to think about the odds.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Once we had the plan formulated, I didn't want to delay putting it into action. The longer we took to move, the longer Sven would be at Emberich's mercy. And he didn't have any mercy. The video of him hadn't reassured me on that front, if I had any doubts.

  There had definitely been something off about him, something that had made me even more uneasy. I didn't think being reborn had fixed the mental disturbance he'd been in when he'd finally been killed. If anything, it might have made him worse. Or maybe it was seeing Sven on the throne that had widened the crack in his already-fragile mental state. He was a man known for being jealous of his power. It was the reason why none of his children survived long enough to become a real threat.

  Except Mia. And that was only because she managed to evade his attempts to kill her long enough to kill him first. She protected herself and Omari from the same fate the others had met, all the brothers and sisters they'd never even seen.

  The irony of it was that if Emberich hadn't brought Mia to him with the intent to get rid of even the slight possibility she might become a threat, she would never have met him—or Ashur or her grandmother. Emberich was instrumental in pushing her into becoming a threat. If he hadn't made that initial move, it was possible, or maybe even probable, that he would have never died, never been forced from the throne. But I was sure he most likely chose to ignore that fact. Self-reflection wasn't his strong suit.

  It reminded me of a story the humans tell, about one of their kings from ancient times, named Oedipus. An oracle told his parents that baby Oedipus would grow up to kill his father and marry his mother. The horrified parents thought of killing the baby, but they couldn’t do it, so they gave the baby to a traveling shepherd from far away. The shepherd took the baby home, and Oedipus grew up in a distant land, never knowing his parents—just like Mia never knew her father. Years later, when Oedipus was grown, a fortune teller told him he would kill his father and marry his mother. He decided to go far away so this could never happen, for he loved the only parents he’d ever known. On his journey, he met a man and they quarreled—Oedipus killed him, never knowing the man was his father. Further on, he vanquished a monster outside a city, and for that the city elders made him king. He married the old king’s widow, whom he’d loved at first sight—unbeknownst to him, she was his mother. They were married for many years and had children, but eventually Oedipus learned the awful truth. He’d killed his father and married his mother. Everything the people did to avoid their fate would have prevented it. Just like Emberich. If he’d left Mia alone, she never would have heard of him. Anyway, Oedipus went insane, and gouged out his own eyes.

  I don’t think Emberich’s mental state had anything to do with realizing his tragic fate. Whatever the reason for his mental deterioration, I didn't trust this Emberich to be able to hold back from killing Sven. Even if that wasn't his intention, even if he wanted to draw out Sven's torture, hold him up as an example of what would happen to those who stood against him, I didn't think he could hold back from going too far if the temptation was right in front of him.

  He wasn't stupid. But neither was he all there.

  We needed to move fast.

  It didn't take long to get ready. Jacob ran back to his place to pack some things he thought we might need, bringing back clothing for me as well. Apart from us, only a few of the group were going to leave. I left most of the guards behind in the city dome, but Reelin and Amna insisted on coming even though Ashur, Mia, and Jacob were with me.

  "Yes, they are your friends," Amna had agreed. At
least she conceded that. "But our sole focus is on keeping you safe. They cannot say the same."

  Reelin murmured his agreement. They had me there. I didn't argue after that.

  So we all climbed into Jacob's car and he drove us through the busy city dome streets. As I looked out at the bustling sidewalks, I didn't think I was ever going to enjoy coming here. It would likely always be linked to crisis and anxiety for me. I didn't know if I'd ever be able to shake that. We got through the security at the gate without a problem. I didn't expect anything less with Jacob at the wheel. He was the epitome of competence. Then we were out of the dome and driving out into the desert, just far enough away that we wouldn't be immediately spotted by people from the city dome.

  Jacob brought the car to a stop, everyone inside silent.

  "Hathai should be here soon," Ashur said.

  She was to bring over the carrier Jacob and I were going to get into. We only had to wait about fifteen minutes before we saw the speck of a car on the horizon. She had made very good time from Ashur’s territory. The car stopped near us about ten minutes later, and the petite Asian woman stepped out. Ashur got out and went over to greet her, helping her pull the modified netting out from the car.

  "I do not like this," Reelin said once again.

  "None of us do," I said, opening the door and stepping out. And it was the truth.

  Everyone else followed my cue.

  "Thank you," I said, walking over to the woman, recognizing her from that dinner we'd had with Mia and Ashur on their rooftop. "I really appreciate this."

  "I hope that everything goes smoothly," she said, her eyes sincere.

  Didn't we all. Now all that was left to do was for Ashur to change. He went over to Mia, bringing her into the circle of his arms and murmuring something in her ear that made her smile, though the nerves were still clear on her face. I looked away, my heart aching for Sven. He just needed to survive a little longer. I'm coming, Sven.

  After that brief, private moment, Ashur stepped away from Mia. The risk he was taking was less than the one Jacob and I were signing up for, but it was still a risk.

  I knew Mia was chomping at the bit to do something more active than waiting, but not only did we only need one person to transport us, her other form was far too distinctive to be used for an operation that required discretion. There weren't many phoenix-dragon hybrids out there that looked so clearly a mix of the two in their other forms.

  In fact, there was just one. One that Emberich had already targeted. It was safer for all involved that Mia stay back.

  Ashur stripped, no sense of self-consciousness in him as he did so. Those of us with alternate forms couldn't really be self-conscious about our bodies when we needed to strip to change forms. It made us more comfortable with nudity than the average human. A few moments later, there was a beautiful gold dragon where Ashur had just been, his powerful body shimmering in the sunlight. There was no mistaking the strength in that large body, or the fact that we were looking at a sleek predator, one that could cut through the air and take down prey with ease. He was an impressive sight.

  I could see Jacob was caught a little off guard by the sudden proximity of a giant dragon, but he didn't let that stop him from stepping towards the net. I wondered what it would take to throw him if a dragon didn't do it. Maybe if the dragon attacked...

  "How do we get in this thing?" he asked me, frowning as he looked down at the admittedly confusing tangle of the net.

  "I'll show you." I turned to Reelin and Amna. They were both grim faced, but they'd finally accepted the fact that nothing they could say would deter me in this case. "Hold down the fort while I'm gone," I said, already knowing they would, but not knowing quite what else to say. "And... thank you. For everything."

  There was an odd sense of finality to that last statement, though I hadn't meant it like that. I just didn't want them to think I didn't appreciate all of their effort, all of their sacrifice.

  "Stay safe," Amna said, and gave me a quick hug. I hugged her back, glad she'd made the move.

  When she let go, Reelin came in to give me a harder squeeze, his muscled arms secure. "Stay sharp," he ordered as he stepped back.

  "I will," I promised. "We'll be back before you know it."

  Maybe I could will that into happening. Wasn't visualizing the result you wanted supposed to do something? I was willing to try anything. Then it was time to go.

  I showed Jacob how to get into the net, using the flat boards incorporated into the bottom for support. They were supposed to make it more comfortable, though nothing could really make riding in a net attached to a dragon or phoenix truly comfortable. After we were situated, Hathai came in and placed some boxes strategically around us to provide us with cover. This needed to look like he was carrying cargo, not people.

  "We're ready," I called out to Ashur as soon as Hathai stepped back.

  "Speak for yourself," Jacob muttered, gripping at the net.

  It made me smile a little as the wind from Ashur's beating wings hit us.

  "Afraid of heights?" I asked, a little surprised to see him looking out of sorts.

  I guess I'd just assumed he was completely unflappable.

  "Maybe I'm just afraid of being carried hundreds of feet in the air, dangling from a net," he retorted as Ashur lifted off. "Shit," he muttered, closing his eyes as we swung into the air.

  It always took a moment for the net steady. I watched the ground fall away as we rose, Jacob missing that particular view, as he kept his eyes tightly shut. Once Ashur was up to the height he'd stay at for the trip, I reached over to tap on Jacob's hand. He was looking a little green around the edges, poor guy. It made him a little more human to me. He was afraid of heights and it looked like flying in a net also gave him motion sickness. I couldn't have predicted either. Both the fear and the physical reaction were foreign to me, but I had wings if I needed them.

  "You'll feel better if you focus on the horizon," I told him, sympathetic to his plight. "It'll help steady you."

  Jacob nodded, opening his eyes and forcing himself to look out. He took a few deep breaths, his color looking a little better as he did so.

  "This might be my least favorite mode of transportation," he speculated out loud.

  "Don't worry—we won't be up for long," I reassured him. "And you most likely won't be in a situation where you'll have to do this again." I considered that. "Well...after the flight back, anyway."

  "That isn't as reassuring as I think you meant it to be," he said wryly, his gaze still fixed on the horizon. That startled a chuckle out of me.

  But I was right about the distance at least. The trip to the edge of the boundary was much shorter by air than it was by car. But now that we were on the first leg of the journey, I willed Ashur to go even faster. I needed to get to Sven now.

  My patience was wearing thin, but I wasn't in charge of the flight. Probably that was for the best. I likely would have exhausted myself before the second leg of our journey and made a mess of things. Didn't make the wait any easier.

  When we finally did land at our target, it was full dark, just as we'd planned. We'd need all the cover we could get. The land between here and the capital didn't have an abundance of shelter to hide behind, just low brush, cacti that didn't grow very tall, and some rocks. One of the reasons why air patrol was deemed sufficient. Trying to patrol this much area on foot or even by car would have been a huge task. But if—no when—we got the capital back, I might talk to Sven about adjusting that security measure. For now, both Jacob and I were dressed in all black to help blend into the night.

  After landing, we got out of the net quickly so Ashur could take off again. He was going to wait for us farther away from the boundary, so he had less chance of being detected. He planned on calling in some of his people when he was a safe distance away. As soon as we were out of the net, Jacob threw a black balaclava at me.

  "So our faces don't give us away," he explained. "Put on your gloves now too."
>
  I pulled on the cotton masks and gloves, leaving just the sliver around my eyes bare. It made me feel a bit claustrophobic, but I could get passed that if it kept us safe. Well, safer, anyway.

  "Stay close to me," Jacob ordered. "If I tell you to go down, go down and freeze immediately. Got it?"

  I nodded. He pulled his own balaclava down, and then we were off. He set an easy pace because we were going to have to travel quite a distance. I hadn't realized how far the capital was from the edge of our territory because I'd never traversed it on foot. It was such a short distance on the map! I was learning all kinds of things.

  "Down!"

  I dropped immediately, going still. A few moments later, I heard the sound of beating wings above us. A sentry. How had he spotted it before I had? I knew my sense of hearing was stronger than a human's.

  I stayed still, feeling completely exposed on the flat ground with nothing between us and the eyes above. I just had to trust the darkness to hide us. Again, one of those things that was easier said than done. I felt sweat trickle down my sides as my heartbeat kept up its now-rapid pace.

  Was he or she hovering above us?

  Had we been spotted?

  Were we just staying still so they had a better shot at us?

  After a nerve wracking minute, I heard the wings flying farther away until I could barely hear them.

  "Move."

  I got up, following Jacob again. Whatever I had expected this trip to be, it wasn't anything like that. I hadn't thought about just the sheer physical aspect of it that much. This was a test of endurance as much as anything. We went on that way for the rest of the trip. The moon provided enough light to see by, which was good because using a flashlight would have been like jumping up and down and shouting that we were there. The only light sources were the stars and the moon apart from the city itself. We had to drop down and freeze twice more before the capital was close enough that I could make out individual structures.

  But we made it. Then it was my turn to lead the way. We didn't go in from the front. I led Jacob around, circling the base of the mountain the city was built into.