"She spoke to you?"
"She spoke directly to me, calling me by name. I don't know everything myself, but as my king . . . and as my friend, you deserve to know. I am Sola's prophet."
Jaylen doubled over in a fit of laughter.
"Why are you laughing?" Xair asked, showing no signs of humor.
"You're so funny. That's a good one, Xair. You as Sola's prophet? Priceless. It's good to see you joking around."
"I wasn't joking. I truly am Sola's prophet."
"Okay, buddy. Sure." Jaylen slid off of the bench then started back up the trail to the store. "You want anything else to drink?"
Xair stood and smoothed his robe that had dried by this time. "Stop. I'm being completely serious. I swear on the souls of my people."
"You can't be serious. This is ridiculous. Why would Sola choose you of all people to do something like that? She wouldn't. You know why? Because she doesn't deal with Ka'taylins."
"What's wrong with Ka'taylins?"
"Nothing, but Sola despises you. Your people are the ones who defied her. She would never choose someone like you to be her prophet. You must have been mistaken. I doubt it was even actually Sola speaking to you."
Xair blinked a few times as he stared at Jaylen in stunned silence.
"What? What's wrong? It's okay. Everyone gets confused. Besides, a Northerner goddess would never even speak to a Ka'taylin. She's far above that." Jaylen gasped and placed his hand over his mouth. "Xair . . . I didn't mean it like that. I didn't mean that!"
"I see." Xair nodded his head then turned his back to Jaylen. "It has come to my immediate attention that my presence is no longer accepted here. Perhaps it never was. This just goes to show how little I do know about Northerner culture and of humanity in general. Forgive me for being an unwanted intrusion."
"Xair, no! I-" Jaylen reached out to his friend just as Xair morphed into a raven and took off into the night sky. "Xair, stop! Xair!"
Chapter 9
Perched on a post outside the healer's tent, Xair fluffed his feathers against the cold night wind as he watched through the tent flap. The lantern light was flickering on the two bodies inside who were gathered around the pile of blankets on the floor. When the two healers moved out of the way, Xair spotted his wife. Amari was covered in a sheen of sweat and undressed to reveal the patches of dark red bumps that spread across her torso and limbs. It was a stark contrast to her nearly translucent white skin. She was barely breathing.
The healers exited the tent, completely unaware of the raven watching them. The first one with the brown hair shook his head. "We've done all we can, Rilan. This is one of those ancient world diseases that Northerners usually don't have to deal with. It's all these dirty Ka'taylins that have showed back up spreading this stuff. And the girl isn't even a pure one. I say we save the medicine for the actual people."
"Don't talk like that. Someone could overhear you. Amari is Xair Korvin's wife. You don't want to get on his bad side."
"Like he could do anything to us. I'm not afraid. The commanders only let him stay around here because they don't want him joining Carvael. You heard what those Ka'taylins have done. They commune with demons and sacrifice infants."
Xair nearly changed back to his human form out of pure rage. They actually believed that? Ka'taylins leashed demons to keep them from harming people, not to be used against them. And sacrificing infants? What a heinous thing to even say. Yes, some of the rogue Ka'taylins, like the ones who harmed Amari, were bad and would probably not be above taking such measures. But not all Ka'taylins. Not him. Except for that one time against Sola. Had he become like them? No. Xair couldn't believe that he was as bad as they were. What Xair did to his people was a necessary part of the process. He had been tricked into believing it was the only way to serve the Arcanas. He had only wanted to do what was right.
"Still, we can't let her die." Rilan, the younger one, insisted.
"Do what you will, Rilan. I'm going to go get some wine and forget about all of this for the night. We have no obligation to save livestock. That's not our job."
"But she's a human being."
The older one chuckled uncaringly. "She's a Ka'taylin. They hide their true animal characteristics underneath that pompous pride they carry themselves with. They have to strive so hard to be like us that they overcompensate for being subhuman."
"Maybe, maybe you're right."
"Of course I'm right." He slapped Rilan on the back then started off towards the middle of camp. "Now, let's go. I don't want to run the risk of catching this. Hopefully the girl is dead in the morning when we have to come back. Then we burn the body and let her pretend husband get over it."
"Pretend?" Rilan asked, almost with a sense of concern in his boyish voice. "I thought they truly were married."
"Oh, please. Who would let dogs get married?"
The two of them laughed as they walked off, lost in more cruel jokes.
Xair was at the end of the limits of his sanity. Everything he had known about these people had been a complete lie. It had become all too obvious that none of them cared. None of them even liked him. How could he have been so blinded by false friendships? He didn't have much time. And he certainly didn't want to waste those precious seconds out here in the cold.
Xair flew into the tent then landed on the pillow next to his wife. When he started to become emotional, he knew he had to leave. This was going to be difficult, but necessary. He never thought it would happen this way, but nothing in his life had gone the way he thought it would. For a few minutes, he stayed there and watched her. What little color had once been in her skin had faded and drained away with her strength. It was by far the most sickening thing he had ever bore witness to.
In a feeble attempt to stop himself from crying, Xair remained in his raven form and whispered softly in her ear. "Amari, my beloved Ili-Anan, I have come to say goodbye. I suppose this is how it all ends, you and I. I know you are hurting and I know that you will not recover from this. Perhaps the traveling was too much on you. That is my fault. I should have noticed how frail you were becoming, but I was too busy trying to solve my own problems. I failed you. If you can hear me, know that I . . . I am sorry. I am sorry for everything I've put you through. I'm sorry for not placing guards around our room that night after you got that threatening letter. Then they took you from me and ripped you apart. That guilt rests solely on my own shoulders. I was too prideful to accept the help I needed. I do not think Dayxi ever forgave me. But I make one last humble request as your Ili-Anan. I ask that you forgive me."
Amari remained silent, but her thin pale fingers reached out to him and weakly touched his beak.
"Oh, Amari. You have been the one thing to make my life at least a tiny bit worth living. No matter where your soul goes from here, know that I will never forget you. You will find peace in your eternal slumber with Sola. I pray that your final hours are painless and that you rest. Do not hold on for me, my love. I am going to be with our people. There is a band of Ka'taylin refugees that have been spotted moving through this area. I will rebuild our race and then we will all go back to our homeland once it thaws. Even if these Northerners do not want me here, I will continue to fight their war for them. After all, Sola designated me as her prophet. So I suppose this is my war now as well. Perhaps this is my way of making my final atonement."
Amari's breathing became even shallower as her hand slid to the blanket and did not move again.
"I shall be leaving you now, my love. Know that I have always loved you, more than demons, more than the elements, and more than my selfish pride. You took me from being a spoiled boy to being what I hope I can at least call a man. You stayed by my side even when I did the unthinkable. For that, I can never repay you." Xair leaned forward and rubbed his beak along her blushing cheekbone. "Rest well, my Ili-Anan. May your soul be free from all the torturous fear I put it through. I hope that you forget me."
* * *
"Heir Korvin? Are you aliv
e? That is your name, isn't it?"
The soft male voice entered his ears and caused him to slowly regain scraps of his consciousness. Xair groaned. Every inch of his body ached like he had been beaten with sledgehammers. A sharp pain shot through his head behind his eyes where an intense headache pounded away at his brain.
"That's him, Ulon. That's your brother. Say hi to your brother, Xair."
What? Brother? Xair opened his eyes in the bright mage-glow that came through the opening at the top of the crude tent. He would have jumped from being startled, but he was too tired to do that. Instead, his eyes widened as he stared face to face with a small pure Ka'taylin boy with the biggest purple eyes he had ever seen. Their noses nearly touched as the boy blinked a few times then fell backwards in a fit of giggling.
"Xair! Get up and show me how to leash a demon. Come on!" The boy tugged on Xair's hand. "You have so many runes!"
Xair groaned some more, but he sat up this time. He felt cool, despite the hot mage-glow. Looking down, he noticed he was undressed except for a set of leather subligar. "Where are my clothes?"
"That's the first thing you're going to ask us?" The Ka'taylin man with waist-length hair that was adorned with small purple amethysts knelt down in front of Xair and handed him a wooden cup filled with water. "Drink this. You need to get rehydrated soon, before the mage-glow gets too hot in the afternoon."
"Then you can come play with me!" Ulon bounced on his toes, sending his chin-length white braids swinging. He appeared not to have any runes at all yet.
"Calm yourself, Ulon. You are in the presence of the most revered Ka'taylin man. We've told you before who Xair is, so I expect you to show him the respect he deserves."
"Yes, Sir Zilon." Ulon frowned, but he bowed and sat quietly on the dirt floor of the tent.
Zilon turned back to Xair and offered him a warm smile. "I ask that you forgive Ulon's immaturity. He hasn't gone through the ritual of cutting yet. We were waiting for his father to return so he could conduct the ritual, but he hasn't been back in close to four years. Ulon is nearly six years old. The older he gets before it is performed, the more painful it will become."
Xair glanced over at the boy who was rolling a pebble around on the floor. "Does everyone here still give their male children over to be mutilated?"
"It is not mutilation. You know that well enough, Xair. You must have hit your head too hard when you fell out of the sky last night."
"So that's how I got here? I was in my raven form, wasn't I?"
"Yes. You were flying over the camp when you suddenly fell and after you landed, you turned human again."
Xair rubbed his eyes. "I knew I shouldn't have tried to use that so soon after . . . never mind. I must simply be exhausted and unable to remain in that form for very long."
Zilon snapped his fingers at the boy. "Ulon, get the comb from the chest then come comb through your brother's hair."
"Yes, Sir Zilon." Ulon retrieved an ivory comb from the small chest then knelt behind Xair where he began combing out the knots and tangles. "You have pretty hair, Xair."
"It's Heir Xair to you, boy." Zilon snapped.
Xair sighed. "No, it's fine. Just call me Xair, Ulon. So, Zilon, how exactly is Ulon my brother? I'm a bit confused."
"The night you had that meeting with your group of supporters and you told them all of your ideas for the new Ka'tayl, Dayxi Nendo gathered up a group of us and we left Ka'tayl. We knew things were going to get rough and we had to protect our children. Your mother was one of our group. She was terrified that you were going to kill her just to prove that you could, as a show of power."
Strange. Now everything began to fall into place. "I had always wondered where my mother was after that. Now I know. I can't say I blame her, though."
"Yes, well, we were only about a mile out to sea on our ship when we saw what you did to our homeland. Even out there, we could see the magic, hear the screams and the screeching of demons. Then everything got so cold, so still. I will not ask about that event, for I still have such high respect for you, Heir Korvin. There must have been a reason you did what you did. No one holds it against you. Anyway, your mother stayed with us for a thousand years."
"Who is Ulon's father?" Xair asked.
Zilon only looked down at the blankets.
"Who is it? Do I not deserve to know?"
"Xair, things got complicated about seven years ago. Our population looked as if it would be wiped out if we didn't start having more children. You would have done the same thing."
He wasn't in the mood to be playing games. "Who is his father? Just tell me."
"Dayxi Nendo." Zilon threw his hands in the air as he revealed what seemed to be great secret. "Your brother's name is Ulon Nendo."
"But Dayxi has been a slave for years."
"That is true. However, his owner let him visit our camps once a month. He was a very merciful and generous owner. During one of those visits, your mother became pregnant with Ulon. After his wife lost their first and only child shortly after leaving Ka'tayl, having Ulon was Dayxi's proudest moment, even if it was with someone he did not truly have feelings for. How is Dayxi? I assume he's found you."
"No. Dayxi was killed recently. That is all I know."
Ulon made a sound that was between a gasp and a whimper.
"Quiet, Ulon." Zilon chastised him quickly.
"And what of Dayxi's wife?" Xair asked.
"Isaya died when your mother died. There was an outbreak of a nasty ancient world plague that ran rampant through the camps. We did all we could, but it seemed to be one of the only diseases that truly didn't care about our immortality. It appears that only Ka'taylins can catch it. We had a few Northerner healers offer to help, for a decent sum of course. We took their help, but it was too late for Isaya and your mother. Luckily, Ulon had already been born a week before. If not, he surely would have perished in your mother's womb. But what of you? What have you been doing this entire time? I was just a boy when we left Ka'tayl."
Ulon's giant eyes traveled down Xair's body to his right hip. "What's that gold disk in your hip?"
Xair gritted his teeth. "A marriage disk.
"Oh, Amari." Zilon raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "And what of your wife?"
"Dead. She died this morning. At least, I'm very certain of it. She caught the sickness."
"Oh, no. I'm so sorry to hear that."
Ulon patted Xair's head comfortingly. "Poor Xair. It's okay."
"Thank you, Ulon."
Zilon grabbed Ulon and pulled him towards the tent flap. "We will give you some time to grieve, Heir Xair."
Xair stood up and stretched, feeling a great deal better after only some water. "That will not be necessary. I grieved enough last night. That is why I fell from my raven form. I was flying until I could not fly anymore. I have said my goodbyes. I am prepared, with a deeply wounded heart, to move forward and to help my people."
"Very well, then." Zilon pushed Ulon towards Xair. "Ulon, you will be your brother's attendant. Find him some clothes then make him a decent meal. He must be starving by now. After that, Xair will be introduced to the rest of the camp."
Chapter 10
"Good morning, King Jaylen. We have your report prepared."
Jaylen rolled off of the nest of blankets and pillows that had been piled in his tent to serve as a makeshift bed. As a paladin, he had been accustomed to not having an actual bed to sleep in. However, the year on the ship in Kato's magnificent bed had spoiled him. He stood up and rubbed his back that was sore from his restless night of sleep. Well, as close to a night's sleep as he was going to get. After Xair flew off, Jaylen searched around Pink Tree for two hours before he gave up and returned to camp.
The soldier in rusty chainmail bowed. "Your Majesty, are you all right?"
Jaylen slipped a loose-fitting black shirt over his head. "I'm fine. Go ahead and deliver your report."
"Yes, Your Majesty. The-"
"Jaylen. Just call me Jaylen, please. I am
so sick and tired of this parading around like something I'm not. We don't need these names and titles. The universe may be ending and yet you still feel like it's worth wasting both of our time to figure out what you need to call me."
The soldier looked stunned. For a few seconds, he simply stood there with his mouth slightly agape.
Jaylen finished dressing then glared at the soldier. "Well? Give me your report. Stop wasting my time."
"Oh, Yes, Your Maj- . . . Jaylen. Morale around the camp is on the rise, despite the angels who are going absolutely crazy over the oatmeal."
Jaylen stopped combing through his short hair. "What? What was that about the oatmeal?"
"Well, the angels are Fallen now, so they need to eat, right? Jaylen, they've been huddled around the bonfire all night long making oatmeal. So much . . . so much oatmeal. They've gone through two months worth in seven hours."
"Oatmeal? There's only nineteen of them."
"Yes, but they act like they've never tasted anything like it. It's bizarre. Jeremiah is trying his best to gain control of them, but they won't even listen to him. Then an hour ago, I spotted him eating it too."
Jaylen rolled his eyes. "Well, we'll see how they like it when we have to go on half rations just to make up the deficit from this. I will have someone go break up this oatmeal cult. Next. Uh, infirmary status."
"The soldiers with the broken bones from the wagon incident are recovering well. Two of the three have been released to go back to training. Our healers are very talented."
"What of Amari's condition?"
"Who?"
Jaylen growled a bit under his breath. "The albino Ka'taylin woman."
"Oh. It."
"Her. She is a woman, a human being." Jaylen picked up his longsword then slid it out of the sheath. He swung it until he stopped with the tip dangerously close to the soldier's neck. "I want every tiny scrap of this racism to be erased from this camp. If I hear one racist comment or name, I will personally execute the offender. I want you to go deliver this message to everyone. I am one hundred percent serious. This will not be tolerated."
Angel of Darkness Books 6-10 Page 32
