Heir of Illaria: Book One of the Illaria Series

by Dyan Chick

  “Everybody, this is my sister, Etta.” Max rested his hand on my shoulder and pushed me toward the table.

  The men standing around the table bowed at me.

  Dropping my hands to my side, I inclined my head to them but didn’t speak. Max’s heavy hand resting on my shoulder was a silent cue for me to stand there without comment.

  He stood next to me against the table and began to share the plan. The fact that the king was going to take the lead in my destruction was apparently bringing joy to the group.

  “We thought it would take years to get him out on a battlefield without his undead army. He won’t think to prepare more than just some King’s Guards and his sorcerers to take out a little girl,” one of the armor clad men explained.

  “We have to strike now while he thinks she’s without the Ravens for support,” said another.

  “But they’ll know she has sorcerer support, I’m sure he had loyalists at the Trials. And he’ll know about the lightning. Everybody does. They’re singing songs about her.”

  Max’s grip on my shoulder tightened. I stepped away. Songs about me?

  Max lifted his hands in the air to pause the conversation. “Then we need to get the word out there that it wasn’t her. That she can’t do magic. It was a set up to make her look more powerful.”

  Several of the men around the table nodded. Saffron narrowed her eyes. “I don’t think that’s necessary,” she said. “The whole reason the king is going to oversee this is because he thinks she has power. He probably wants to be there to instruct his sorcerers on counter spells since he can’t cast against her himself. We need to show her as unafraid. Maybe even play up the princess thing. Make her look like she thinks she can get away with anything. Put her out in plain sight, without any fear.”

  I bit down on my lip and looked from Max to Saffron. He was actually going along with this? I wasn’t sure if I should be happy or worried. How long had I waited to help? My stomach knotted. While I wanted the king gone, the thought of being out in the open, surrounded by sorcerers, was terrifying.

  Max steepled his fingers under his chin, then nodded. “Saffron’s right,” he gestured to her, “lay out your plan for us.”

  A half smile flickered on her face for a moment before she got serious again. She began to explain the plan while the men listened with rapt attention. I tried to focus as much as I could on the different parts but my mind kept replaying my interactions with the Reapers. Max still didn’t know about the arctic fire. They wanted to keep me hidden, but I could help.

  “And this is where you will be.” He pointed to Luxor, the town we had been in last night. “You will be stopping in several shops and making it very clear you are there. We need a lot of witnesses. The people of Luxor are supportive of the Ravens and have an exit strategy for when the king and his guards arrive.”

  Max continued to explain the plan. “Meanwhile, we’ll be drawing guards to the cities of Marina and Taurin while we set up our traps at Luxor. It should help us to disable the King’s Guard enough to bring them down.”

  “What about the Reapers?” I asked.

  Max raised an eyebrow. He set down the stick he had been using as a pointer. “We anticipate they’ll be with the king.”

  “And where will I be?” I looked to the map, wondering if any of the small stones or blocks were supposed to represent me.

  “We’ll have you back here where it’s safe after you’ve made your appearance.” Max smiled at me. I didn’t like it when he tried to play the part of the concerned big brother. It wasn’t natural for him.

  Nobody else is going to die for me. I took a deep breath. Time to reveal my secret. “I’m the only one who can take down the Reapers,” I said.

  I heard a few murmurs as people realized what I had said.

  Max smiled at me indulgently. “I heard about your lightning and while that is an impressive trick, it was probably beginner’s luck. Besides, it won’t work on Reapers.”

  I shook my head. “You don’t know everything about me.”

  Saffron locked eyes with me, then turned to Max. “It’s true. She can take down the Reapers. I’ve seen it.”

  I could feel the weight of everybody’s eyes on me. I looked down, feeling overwhelmed by the pressure and expectation.

  “And you didn’t feel the need to tell this to me sooner?” Max said through clenched teeth.

  “We haven’t had a chance to talk since the attack on the Ravens,” she said calmly.

  Max placed his hand on my shoulder, using a gentler voice. “How do you get rid of them?”

  I looked up, reluctantly and blew out a breath. Here goes nothing. “I can make arctic fire.”

  Max’s mouth pulled into a tight line and he stared at me for a long moment.

  “She is the daughter of the king,” somebody across from me said.

  27

  Fire flashed in Max’s eyes. He was furious with me. “Why didn’t you tell me you found your element?”

  “I’m sorry,” I whispered.

  Max stared at me for a moment. His eyes softened and he took a deep breath. He turned to address the group. “Clearly in our efforts to stay alive the last few weeks, we had some communication issues. If Etta does indeed have the ability to create arctic fire, and control it, we may have to revise our plans.”

  I looked at each man around the table. Their attention seemed more focused on me now than on my brother. I could feel something shifting but I wasn’t sure what it was.

  “Etta, you’ll need to go to Master Flanders. See if he can help you to wield and control this special talent of yours,” Max said.

  I flinched at the word special. There was still anger, or maybe envy in his voice, and it made me uncomfortable. I was so excited to have found a family when I discovered I had a brother. But so far, it hadn’t turned out the way I hoped it might. My shoulders dropped. I felt like I let him down somehow. Or like I had hurt his feelings. Maybe I was wrong to keep it from him for so long. Before Max could say anything else, I walked away from the table.

  I found Master Flanders sitting alone on the roof of the barn. From this vantage, he could see the whole camp and all of its busy, chaotic progress. He didn’t even turn to look at me as I approached. I sat next to him and embraced the relative silence of the rooftop. I took a deep breath looked down at the pendant around my neck.

  Closing my eyes, I allowed myself a few minutes to consider what my life might be like if I didn’t wear this necklace. If I was just a peasant girl living with her grandmother. I’d have woken up this morning and eaten breakfast with my grandmother. We would have harvested vegetables from our garden and maybe gone into town to trade for some other goods. Maybe I’d flirt with one of the boys in town or gossip with some of the girls.

  I sighed. My life had never been like that. I never had any friends until Saffron found me. My thoughts flashed to Saffron, then to Ashton. Now that they were a part of my life, could I ever go back to a time without them? Was it worth having the quiet, peaceful life of peasant in order to be safe from harm? Would I trade the few precious kisses from Ashton for a life of vegetable gardens and embroidery by candlelight?

  I shook my head. No. I couldn’t go back to that life, even if it was a choice. I had come too far. I could shoot a bow and I could make a plant grow with my hands. I could call on a thunderstorm and make somebody tell the truth. I had Ashton, however brief our time might be, those kisses, it was worth it. And I was going to keep fighting for more.

  Steeling myself, I opened my eyes. I dropped my legs to the ground and sat up straight. When I turned to look at Master Flanders he was already looking at me with a smile on his face.

  “Looks like you’ve figured something out,” he said.

  I nodded. “Yes, I have. I need to learn how to control my arctic fire.”

  He smiled. “I’ve been waiting for you to ask for a while. I’m glad you’re finally ready.”

  A crowd gathered around me as I stood behind the b
arn with Master Flanders. I tried to hide the self conscious feeling sweeping through me at having an audience watch me learn how to use my magic. So far, all of my training had been done privately. It was a big change to have everybody standing around and whispering about the girl who could make Reapers go away.

  I took a deep breath in and bent my knees to sink into my stance. I raised my hands and concentrated. I felt the heat well up inside me, felt the tingle of magic, but the cold was missing. I released my stance and dropped my arms to my side. The people around me groaned. They wanted a show.

  “I can’t feel it.” I rubbed my eyes with my palms. “I feel the heat, but not the cold.”

  “It’s okay,” Master Flanders assured me. “It’s a very complicated bit of magic. When you did it before, your life was in danger. You had adrenaline to push you.”

  I shook my hands out and paced in a circle. “It’s so frustrating.” I had been working on this for an hour already. A few of the people in the crowd gave up and walked away. It was a relief to see them go.

  “Maybe I can’t do it in front of people yet,” I mused.

  “We can go.” A man in the crowd offered but made no movement to actually leave.

  Master Flanders lifted his hand. “No, that’s not necessary. If you can bring this about with the pressure of a crowd and control it, we can get you to stop passing out after you use it.”

  “I need a minute.” I sat down on the ground and cradled my face in my hands. Think. How can you make this happen?

  A gentle hand on my shoulder brought me out of my head. I looked up to see Ashton. He reached a hand down to help me stand. “Not going so well?”

  I laughed. “That’s an understatement.” I lowered my voice, “I’m starting to worry that maybe I never even did it in the first place. Like maybe I imagined it.”

  He laughed back. “You did it. Twice. I was there, I can tell you that you did it.”

  The crowd had thinned while I sat in the grass. I was grateful. Maybe if I wait a bit longer the rest of them will leave.

  Ashton leaned in so he could whisper in my ear. “You can do this. I know you can.” He walked away to give me some space.

  His confidence stirred something inside me. I took a deep breath and turned away from Ashton and the other observers. I closed my eyes and visualized myself creating the arctic fire. What if I couldn’t ever do it again? I shook my head, trying to dispel my doubts. My heartbeat quickened. What if the Reapers came back and I couldn’t save anybody? I pictured the first time they came. Ashton trying to face them alone. If I hadn’t stepped in, he wouldn’t be here. Fear and anger welled up inside me and I felt an icy chill run through my veins. The corner of my mouth turned up in a smile. The ice has returned.

  I took a step back and lifted my hands. I could feel the ice running through my veins. Then the heat came, it stung but I powered through. I imagined that I was the only thing between my friends and the Reapers. I wasn’t going to let anybody else die for me. I thought of Master Edward and the feeling intensified.

  I pushed the icy heat through my hands and the blue flames erupted. I formed the flames into a ball and lifted it above me before letting it come crashing down. Then I closed my hands, extinguishing the flames. I collapsed on the ground, exhausted, but conscious.

  Ashton ran to me and wrapped his arms around me. “Stay with me.”

  My breathing was heavy and the world spun. I was fighting to stay conscious. “I did it.”

  He hugged me tight.

  I was so excited I planted a kiss on his cheek. I didn’t really care who was watching. I can create arctic fire whenever I want. I can control the fire. Now I just need to get stronger.

  The attack would take place in a few days. We planned to strike against the two guard stations nearest Luxor shortly after I started making my presence obvious in town. The hope was that the guard stations would not be able to send reinforcements. Dealing with the king, whatever army he brought, his sorcerers and Reapers was enough.

  Ashton still wasn’t pleased with the plan, but I doubted he would be happy with any plan that involved using me as bait.

  “It’s going to be fine, Ashton.” I was in my now regular place behind the barn working on managing my fire. In the last couple of days, the crowd of people watching me had disappeared as everybody prepared for the upcoming attack. Most of the time I practiced alone. Today’s practice time with Ashton was a rare gift. Making arctic fire was getting easier every time I worked on it. I was able to create it faster and recover faster after each use.

  Ashton frowned and crossed his arms. “I’d feel better if I was going with you.”

  I let go of the arctic fireball I was holding in my hands and dropped my hands to my side. “You know you can’t do that. Micah knows who you are, and he knows what kind of power you have. Besides, Celeste can handle it.”

  Celeste and I had spent some time together over the last couple of days, and we were surprisingly forming a friendship. It was helped by the stories she told me about the sorcerer she trained with growing up. She was so clearly in love with him, that I no longer felt jealous of her spending time with Ashton.

  “Ashton.” I put my hands on his shoulders. “You have to let me do this and you have to support me.” I dropped my hands. “I can’t do this without your support.”

  He sighed. “Fine. I know you can do this. I just didn’t want you to.” One side of his mouth lifted in a sideways smile. “I have a feeling I’ll never be able to keep you from doing anything.”

  “I think you’re starting to learn,” I teased him.

  Celeste called out to us. I turned to see her rounding the corner of the barn.

  “How’s it coming?” she asked.

  “I’m getting better,” I said. “Faster.”

  “That’s great.” She smiled at me. “You’re going to need the speed this time, I imagine. Plus, I don’t want to die so it’s in my interest for you to get it right.”

  I laughed at her. “I see where your concern comes from.”

  Celeste radiated an optimism that I hadn’t seen much of lately. She was also a very powerful sorceress. She squeezed in a few lessons with me, teaching me spells that she thought I might be able to use if I happened to be captured or cornered.

  “I’ll take over, Ashton.” She nodded to him. “Max asked for you.”

  Ashton nodded back and glanced around. Seeing that we were still alone, he gave me a soft kiss on my cheek before he walked away. We hadn’t had any real privacy since the trials but I cherished even the slightest reminder of how he felt about me. I watched him walk around the barn, out of sight.

  Celeste clapped her hands together. “Now where did we leave off?”

  I pursed my lips and thought back to our stolen hour of practice time yesterday. “Shield spells.”

  “That’s right. We learned how to make a shield around just you. Today I want to show you how to expand the shield so you can protect people around you. You know, just in case.”

  “That’s perfect.” The one thing that kept driving me in my practice with the arctic fire was my desire to protect my friends. It was the only way I found the strength to offer myself as bait.

  I got into my sorcerer stance and held out my arms, palms pushing outward. Celeste stood next to me.

  “Okay, now just like yesterday but you need to add me to your shield. Picture it expanding, picture both of us in the bubble of protection.”

  I concentrated and felt the tingle of magic move from my fingers and down my arms. I could feel the shield spreading from my hands and encasing me. I pushed it further and felt it expanding.

  “You’ve got it,” Celeste encouraged. “Keep pushing.”

  I closed my eyes and focused.

  “There.” Celeste reached out her hand, her fingers brushed against the shimmery shield I created. “Great job. I hope you never need to use this, but you never know.”

  I smiled and released the shield. It was hard to hold it. I was
breathing heavily. When Celeste showed me how to do this, she held it for a really long time. “How did you hold that so long yesterday?”

  “It’s all about practice. Remember, I’ve been training with magic since I was four years old. You just started.”

  “You knew you wanted to be a sorceress at four?” I asked.

  She shrugged. “I didn’t really have a choice. Where I grew up, if you had magical ability, you started training with a tutor at four. When I was six, I was sent to the Sorcery Academy. It was nearly full time training until I was old enough to take the trials.”

  “Did you ever go home and see your family?” I wondered what it would be like to have a family you never saw.

  “They visited me for holidays. It’s just how it is.” She shrugged again. “I didn’t know anything else.”

  “Are there a lot of sorcerers in Gallia?” Maybe we should be focusing on forging a stronger alliance with them.

  “Not any more than other kingdoms. But we train anybody with magical ability in the schools, not just nobility. So maybe we have more trained sorcerers.” She looked a little sad.

  “I’m sorry.” I looked down briefly. “I keep asking you questions about your home while you are stuck here with us. You must miss it.”

  She shook her head. “I’m here because I want to be here. Ashton is my oldest friend, which means you’re my friend, too. For years, I’ve been hearing from Ashton what it’s like for your people. My country is peaceful. I can’t imagine living in fear of your own king. It needs to change and I want to help.”

  “Thank you,” I said. I didn’t have words strong enough to express how I felt.

  “Besides,” she added. “You’re half Gallic.”

  My brow creased and I stared at her. I’d never thought of that before. Most of the conversation around my family was centered on my father. My mother was rarely mentioned. Maybe people here didn’t know as much about her since she was from Gallia. “Do you know anything about my mother?”

  Celeste pursed her lips and looked up, thinking. “Not really. I was very young when she became Illaria’s queen.”