His eyes widened, and his mouth moved, but no words came forth. The minotaur gripped the doorframe and peered into the hallway. He squinted at Alysha and stumbled into the room. Delilah followed him inside.
Pancras collapsed into an armchair before the hearth, opposite another well-muscled minotaur. The minotaur wizard pointed at Delilah.
“De… Delilah. The archmage. Bloody bones, how in Selene’s name did you get here?”
Unable to hold back her grin a minute longer, Delilah spread her arms as she spun in place. “Magic!”
***
Kale ran through the crowds of the undercity, his wings tucked behind him to keep them from becoming a hindrance. By the time he reached the market area, the crowds became thick enough that he could no longer run, and the disappointment and frustration fueling his tears ran dry.
He kicked a rock out of the way, but it was poorly aimed, skittering only a few feet ahead. When he reached it, he kicked it again, this time sending it clattering across the cobblestones, through the railing, and into the gorge. Other draks called out to him as he passed, but lost in his own thoughts, Kale ignored them. He stopped to peer over the railing.
Most of the gorge, as usual, lay deep in shadow. Glancing around, he saw he wasn’t far from the spot where he initially fell into the chasm. That accident led him to discover the cavern and the stairs that led to the abandoned shop which later became his home.
Home. It’s not Drak-Anor. That’s home, or was. Now, Pancras is gone, and Deli’s abandoned me. I’m never going to see home again. The thought brought fresh tears to his eyes. He wiped them away. Across the gorge, he saw a pair of draks pushing a cart with wide, spoked wheels. His eyes followed the spokes as they spun round and round.
Wheels. Spokes. Images of teeth and gears came unbidden to his mind. I used to build stuff all the time. No one needs traps here. I was good at that.
He spun and stepped face-first into the hind end of a minotaur pushing a potato cart. The impact sent Kale sprawling with stars in his eyes and fresh tears from smashing his snout.
“Hey, watch it!”
Kale rubbed his sore nose as the minotaur helped him to his feet. “Thanks, sorry.”
“You’re always causing trouble.” The minotaur lunged to grab his cart as it rolled away. “Damn thing.”
“Don’t you have a brake or something for that?” Kale examined the cart’s wheels, discovering a patchwork kludge of mismatched parts.
“No. If you think you can convince the wheelwrights in the upper city to take a look at it, be my guest.” The minotaur snorted and adjusted his grip on the cart so he could reposition some unstable potatoes.
“I could rig up a hand brake for it.”
The minotaur scratched his head. “Really? That’d be something. I’d pay you. Need any potatoes?”
Kale chuckled. “No, we don’t eat those. When you get a chance, come by the limner shop near Shadow Bridge, and I’ll fix it up for you. Ask for Kale, but don’t come too soon.” He checked his pouch for money. “I need to buy some parts.”
He waved to the minotaur as he sought out a shop. Kale knew just the place; he passed it often while wandering the undercity. One of the drak tinkers not only repaired pots, but also he did minor blacksmithing and clock repair on the side; although Kale suspected not many draks or minotaurs in the undercity actually owned clocks.
The winged drak returned home with two packs filled with gears, wheels, sprockets, springs, plates, and every tool that caught his fancy. He was drawn to them, as if a force inside told him it was right.
Ori glanced up from his book. “Oh, Kale. Welcome back.”
“Thanks. Is my sister still here?” He set down his bags in the corner.
“She’s gone.” Kali entered the shop from the back. Placing her hands on her hips, she glanced at the packs. “What are those?”
Kale rubbed the base of his neck. “I felt compelled to buy these things. Maybe it’s the weird clockwork dreams I’ve been having, but when I was out there, I was talking to a minotaur who needed his cart fixed, and I… don’t know. I just need to build stuff again.”
His mate approached him and took his hands. “You’re staying then?”
“I was upset”—he bowed his head and brought Kali’s hands to his lips—“and Deli and I have never been separated on purpose. I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say.”
“Oh! What kind of things do you want to build?” Ori peered over the counter at the bags Kale placed on the floor.
“I used to build traps in Drak-Anor.” He regarded the blue drak. “I don’t think there’s much call for that here, but I learned a lot about clockwork mechanisms working with that puzzle box. Maybe I could make boxes, fancy locks, maybe toys.”
“You could sell them here. I’ll help.” Kali smiled and put her head on Kale’s shoulder.
“Oh, well, I’m taking up more room than I need, Kale. I can tighten up my area if you need space, unless you want me to leave.”
Kale shook his head and put his arm around Kali. “I won’t need that much space. We can share the counter, if that’s all right.” He recognized he didn’t need Ori’s permission since the blue drak sublet the space from them.
“We can have a good life together here, Kale. I promise.”
“I’m going to try, Kali. I swear on Hon’s Hearth, I’m going to try.” He meant it. Kale didn’t invoke the gods often, and he hoped that invoking the name of the god of pacts would help him remember his promise.
“Just… promise me we won’t have wizards coming and going at all hours.”
“We won’t.” Kale smiled. “The next time Katka comes by, we’ll talk to her about scheduled access to those books.”
His mate helped him unpack, sort, and store beneath the counter all the parts and equipment he purchased. Once he was finished, he worked on creating a hand brake for the minotaur’s cart.
It felt right.
***
Pancras’s mind reeled. Of all the people to come knocking on his door at this time of night, he would never have anticipated one of the draks he left behind. If anyone, he expected Qaliah. The two minotaurs sent the fiendling far enough away on an errand to fetch food so that they could steal a few private moments. He caught his breath as he ducked behind a dressing screen and donned proper robes.
“Feeling self-conscious?” Delilah’s human companion chuckled and stood with her arms crossed. Pancras noticed a familiarity about the woman.
“I’m sorry, you are?” Pancras tossed Orion the tunic emblazoned with the symbol of the Divine Tribunal.
The tall, platinum-haired woman bowed. “I am known by many names. I am the Frost Queen, Alysha Vibekedottir, and I have come to find my sister.”
Sister, sister… Vibekedottir? Pancras furrowed his brow and rubbed his right horn. “Gisella?”
“Yes, the Golden Slayer. Where is she, Minotaur?”
Delilah cleared her throat. “This is Pancras, one of my mentors and now, apparently, deputy headmaster of the Arcane University here in Vlorey.” She cocked her head. “Does that mean you’re not First Wizard of Drak-Anor anymore?”
“You forgot bonelord.” Orion pulled on his shirt.
Archmage Delilah glanced at Orion and eyed Pancras. “Bonelord? Like that fellow from Vlorey who fought at Drak-Anor when we kicked the oroqs out?”
“Yes, Terrick.” Pancras had not thought about the human bonelord in years. “Gisella went scouting with one of the Justicar’s people. She should be back soon.”
“How did you become a bonelord?” The drak archmage climbed into the chair opposite Orion.
“It is an arduous tale, not nearly as fascinating, I’d wager, as how you arrived here so quickly. It seems impossible. Where is your brother?”
Delilah inspected one of her claws. “Oh, the Frost Queen here, my apprentice, and I rediscovered the secret of the moon gates. Kale had to stay home in Muncifer with his mate.”
The strength again left Pancras
’s legs. He stumbled over to Orion’s chair and grasped its backrest. He rested his head on the other minotaur’s. “Apprentice? You have an apprentice? Kale has a mate, yes, I remember. I feel so very old, Orion.”
Orion reached around and patted Pancras on the flank. “Neither one of us is young anymore.”
When he was a student, Pancras learned that the moon gates once existed, taught they were all lost during The Sundering. “It seems we both have long stories to tell—”
A knock at the door interrupted him. Pancras recognized the distinctive pattern of Qaliah’s rapping and let her in. The Golden Slayer stood alongside her.
“Hey! Look who I found fresh from the Palace of Justice.”
“Gisella”—Pancras bowed his head and held the door open for the two ladies—“your sister is here to see you.”
***
“Alysha?” Gisella pushed past Qaliah and entered Pancras’s chambers. The fiendling swore and staggered in attempt not to drop the fare she carried. Gisella arrived at the Arcane University just as Qaliah returned from her errand.
The Frost Queen faced her sister, her platinum locks moving as she turned, as immaculate as ever. She crossed her arms under her bosom in the superior pose she often adopted when around people she didn’t know. She still wore her enchanted fur-lined cloak. Is she never without it?
Alysha opened her arms and smiled. “Before I call you a fool, come here.”
The sisters embraced. A hint of jasmine clung to Alysha’s hair, a scent that brought with it familiar memories of home. “I’ve missed you. It’s been too long.”
“That it has, but it would have been safer for you to come see me.” The Frost Queen held her at arm’s length. “Oh, Gisella, you look well.” She brushed the Golden Slayer’s cheek. “Getting too much sun, though, eh?”
“I’ve been miserably hot ever since we arrived.” Gisella noticed the striped drak sitting in Pancras’s chair. “Is that…”
“Delilah, remember? I’m archmage now, Slayer.”
Gisella bowed. “Yes, I heard. Congratulations.”
“Now, we have family business to discuss.” Alysha rested her hand on Gisella’s shoulder. “Is there someplace we might speak privately?”
Gisella moved away from Alysha and retrieved chairs from Pancras’s table. “Pancras already knows. The rest may as well, since they’re all helping.” She nodded to Delilah. “Unless you want to dismiss the archmage.”
“Oh, I get to hear juicy family gossip? Excellent! May we eat while we do so?” Qaliah held up the covered basket from which the aroma of fresh bread wafted.
“Hey, I remember you.” Delilah pointed a clawed finger at Qaliah. “No more rhymes?”
The fiendling aimed a forced smile at the drak. “An affectation your predecessor demanded. Now that my indenturetude is over, I try to avoid it.”
Gisella held up her hand. “You can rhyme and jest and catch up on stories later. I’ve just met with the Lord Justice, and we’ve come up with a plan that merits your attention.” She nodded at Pancras. The minotaur clung to the back of Orion’s chair. His slumped shoulders and vacant expression told of one overwhelmed with new developments.
She cleared her throat. “That is, if Pancras agrees everyone here should be involved.”
“Hm?” The minotaur blinked and turned his head toward her. “Oh, yes, I would not dream of omitting your sister and Delilah.” He smiled at the archmage. “I know she’ll be quite helpful.”
“I’ll always be here to help you, Pancras.” The massive chair dwarfed the drak, making her appear child size, even though she stood in it. “Perhaps you’d like this chair, though? It’s a little large for me.”
Once everyone was seated, Gisella related the discovery she and Valora made at the farm and their discussion with the Lord Justice upon their return.
Orion stroked his chin. “The king will not interfere with any action Lord Fenwick plans to take, but I don’t expect he’ll send help. Not with the queen having taken ill.”
“Yes, I’ve heard of this mysterious malady from which the queen suffers, but no one will speak of it.” Pancras drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair.
“Those who know are sworn to secrecy.” Orion raised his eyebrows and shrugged. “The rest of us live in ignorance.”
“Which are you, Minotaur?” Alysha glanced at her sister and smiled. “A secret-keeper or ignorant?”
Orion’s head turned toward Alysha. “The latter. I am not in the king’s confidence.”
“Yes, well, we’ve been assured it has nothing to do with the matter at hand.” Gisella waved her hand in dismissal. “All we can do now is wait for Lord Fenwick to return. Then, I believe, it would be best to head to Zamora and destroy the Lich Queen before she regains power.”
“Sister.” Alysha’s curt tone reminded Gisella of their mother’s lectures. “You should not go to Zamora. You’re too close as it is.”
Gisella snapped around to face the Frost Queen. “Aurora herself has charged me—”
“With giving yourself over to her? Is that it? Because you know that’s what will happen.” Alysha’s lips became a thin line, and her eyes narrowed.
“You lost me.” Qaliah held up her hand.
“That’s because my sister left out an important detail. The Lich Queen is our grandmother.”
Gisella pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. Pancras was the only one who had been privy, and although she spoke previously of revealing the family secret to Orion, Delilah, and Qaliah, she had hoped to the need would not arise. “That’s not relevant. My will—”
“Is insufficient.”
The Golden Slayer glared at her sister. She hated when Alysha interrupted her. “Sister—”
“Not against blood magic, Gisella. You know she won’t hold back, and you haven’t been trained to resist it, not like I have. She will bind her spirit to your form, and then she’ll once again have a youthful, strong, beautiful body.” Alysha rose, spreading her arms, and spun in place. “A glorious, beautiful, new Witch Queen who can seduce all the rulers and kill all those who resist. She’ll run rampant over the north and then set her sights on the south.”
“You two”—Qaliah pointed at the sisters—“are related to that moldy bag of bones?”
“Forgive me.” Orion tented his fingers before him. “I don’t quite understand what you’re saying. How is she more vulnerable than you?”
Gisella understood exactly what her sister meant. “If the Lich Queen’s goal is to gain a fleshly body again, she needs a blood relative to possess. It is the only way she can return to this world. My sister”—Gisella bowed her head toward Alysha—“believes I am more vulnerable because I’m not a sorceress like she is.”
“Because I have been trained to resist blood magic mind enchantments.”
“You know, it occurs to me”—Qaliah clicked her fingers to turn everyone’s attention to her—“that she has demons under her command, too. I don’t know if you noticed…” The fiendling pointed at her horns and held up her tail.
“What?” Alysha spread her hands. “Are you saying you’re in league with her? You’re a spy, is that it?” She clenched her fists and stepped toward Qaliah. Gisella extended her arm, restraining her sister.
Qaliah jumped out of her chair and backed away. “What? No!”
Pancras stood, holding his hands out in front of him. “She reacts poorly to the presence of demons. It affects her, physically.”
The Frost Queen returned to her seat. “Then she’s a liability.”
“Look, I want to help in any way I can.” Qaliah gripped the back of her chair. “It’s the whole reason I came north with Blondie and the minotaur. But I don’t think I can be surrounded by demons like the one that was in Lord Tyron. It’s not a good idea.”
Orion stood and placed his hand on the fiendling’s shoulder and turned toward the group. “There’s no shame in it, Qaliah. Unless I am specifically ordered by Lord Fenwick, I cannot accompany you.
I have duties here in the city that are mine alone, obligations for which I am responsible. But I will aid you in any way I can within those limitations.”
“I fail to see how remaining in the city can help at all.” Alysha returned to her chair and crossed her arms.
Gisella nodded. She put her hand on her sister’s arm. “It’s fine, Orion and Qaliah. If we fail, someone will need to warn others. We’ll make sure you have all the information we have, just in case.”
The Justicar met Pancras’s gaze. “Believe me, I will pray to the Divine Tribunal for your success.”
“Fortunately, we have time to make a solid plan.” Gisella regarded the motley group around her. “Lord Fenwick won’t be back for several days. We need to equip ourselves and find out as much about Zamora as we can.”
She turned to the archmage. “I was hoping the Arcane University could help with that.”
“Pancras and I can scour the libraries here. There’s bound to be something, right?”
The minotaur wizard nodded. “Surely. Vlorey fought the Lich Queen before. I’ll talk to the headmaster, as well. You’ll be expected to address the students while you’re here, you know. They haven’t had an archmage visit in decades.”
The drak’s teeth clicked as she snapped her mouth shut and then sighed. “Fantastic.”
“It’s late. Let’s reconvene tomorrow and divide our tasks. I’m sure the archmage and Pancras have some catching up to do”—Gisella rose and took her sister’s hand—“as do my sister and I.”
***
After Gisella and her sister exited, the archmage found herself alone with two minotaurs and the fiendling. Qaliah brought plenty of food and ale for all of them, so they spent the rest of the evening trading stories about how Delilah and Pancras spent the months since their separation.
“You died again?” Delilah jaw hung agape. She turned her glare on Qaliah. “You killed him?”
“And you returned again.” Orion stared the ceiling. “No wonder you speak with confidence of having a mandate from Aita. She has tasked you personally.”
Salvation (Scars of the Sundering Book 3) Page 33
