by T. G. Ayer
They struggled as Sienna screamed, “Let her go!” She slammed her hands into his arms and I felt the vibrations of the blow around my throat.
The loud crack of glass rang out and even at this altitude the sound echoed.
And then we fell.
Shards of glass pierced the fabric my dress, my ankle twisted, and something tore painfully at my fingertips.
We were falling.
Sienna’s arms were around my waist and she was screaming. Wind flapped against our gowns and I bore a faint hope that they would act as parachutes.
Air rushed around us, and behind me Sienna was panicking, struggling for air. I couldn’t see her. I was about to apologize for failing her when a sudden gust of wind hit us sideways and we were airborne, as if we’d become weightless.
The grip around my waist tightened and when I looked down I saw giant claws encircling my torso. Where Sienna’s hands had been only seconds ago.
Air billowed past me, and I craned to look behind me, knowing already what I would see.
Sienna, the golden dragon.
Chapter 41
The great golden dragon held me gently, its wingspan thirty feet wide or more. It banked and made a gentle turn, then thrust its leathery wings. Wind rushed against my face as the giant creature skimmed the air currents before slowing in front of my balcony.
It angled its body, wings flapping high above, and lower legs stretched. The creature landed gingerly on the small balcony, only a tiny square of crystal, its giant claws clicking loudly on the smooth floor.
It unfurled its claws and released me, and before I could offer my thanks it began to shimmer. Gold and bronze light swirled while specks of sunlight sparkled within the haze of color. The giant form rippled, undulating into an even smaller shape and then it disappeared in a puff of bronze and gold light.
I slumped to the cool tiles, knees and hands slamming against the floor, my limbs too filled with the icy numbness of shock to move. Sienna lay on the floor beside me, her flaming hair fanned around her, her face pale.
Her clothing remained intact, not ripped to pieces like most shifters. Drakyr must have different magic from shifters.
She lay deathly still and I leaned closer, ready to perform CPR, but then her eyelids fluttered and she let out a soft puff of air. She frowned, groaning as she lifted her hands and pressed them to her forehead.
“What the hell just happened?” she mumbled.
“Don’t you remember?” I crawled forward, my own shock forgotten as I worried over her.
She shook her head. “One moment I was fighting off your attacker and the next we were falling.” She squinted back up at me, and gold flames flickered in her eyes. “How did we get back up here?”
“A dragon saved us.” I didn’t elaborate.
She scowled. “Who? Where did they go?” She got to her knees, reaching for the balustrade, and stared out over the city. Smoke curled from chimneys, and soft lights glowed from windows opened onto the dark streets.
Beyond, stars twinkled, silver and blood, in an inky sky. There was no dragon in sight.
I shrugged. “No idea.” I’d never seen a dragon before today, much less been cuddled by one. Although the creature had been gentle with me, I had to admit I was a little freaked out.
Even though I knew that Sienna was the dragon, I decided that it was best not to tackle this new development with her just yet. Something was very wrong with her. Her memories must have been tampered with. It’s what I’d expect from Omega so nothing surprised me now.
But as I studied her pale profile, her confused expression, I had to wonder how many other times had this happened. How often had she shifted into Drakyr form and then not recalled a thing?
The danger in this was unquestionable, and terrifying.
But it wasn’t something I could just drop in her lap this minute. She needed time to process it all. I’d have to ease her into her new reality. And while doing that I had to understand what was staring at me in the face.
If Sienna is a Drakyr, then Logan is too.
It meant that Logan was no human fire mage. And Sienna was no human Drakyr slave.
Logan and Sienna, twins with powers that have been hidden even from themselves, watched over by people who don’t seem to have their best interests at heart. Who would want to keep them powerless and ignorant of who they really are?
The Queen and the General.
My mind repeatedly looped back to the story of the powerful twins destined to sit upon the Drakys throne. Could Logan and Sienna be these twins? Were they caught up in some royal political power play? If so then that put Lyra’s integrity in the spotlight.
Or was it more sinister? Perhaps an inter-realm power play with Omega at the head of it all? And considering Reid’s death, was the mining of the Erulite of any importance?
And if all of this were true then were they the rightful Queen and General of Drakys?
I pushed to my feet, tracing a finger along my now throbbing throat. I’d have a bruise within a few hours. Would be fun explaining that to the Senate in the morning.
Sienna turned to me. She weaved on her feet for a moment then came to curl an arm around my waist as she helped me to my feet.
“What happened to you? Who was that man?” she asked as she helped me into the room. Her voice was tinged with uneasiness; she asked a question to which I suspected she already had the answer.
“Someone . . . Someone was in my room.”
“I saw . . .” She sent a panicked glance at the empty balcony behind me. “He looked . . . familiar.”
“It wasn’t Logan.” I said his name, even as I wondered how wise it was to discuss him here, considering the invasion of my room. But a man had attempted to murder me, I should be far more careful about the real reason I was here.
The mention of Logan drew an unexpected reaction from Sienna.
She stiffened. “You . . .” She let go of me and put her finger to her lips.
I sat on the bed and took a deep breath. “I’m fine. I think it may have just been a hallucination.” I stared hard at her and she got my drift.
She nodded, turning on her heel and heading out into the living area. She opened the door, then over her shoulder she called, “I believe that some fresh air would do you good. I know the perfect place.”
I pushed to my feet. At least breathing was a little easier now, although it still hurt to swallow.
As I reached the door, she placed an arm around my waist, offering to help me out of the apartment and into the hallway. I steeled my muscles, taking my weight onto my own feet and gave Sienna a smile of gratitude before sending her a pointed glance at the pair of guards who bracketed the entrance to my room.
Despite appreciating her help, I didn’t want either them, or any passers-by, to see me weak, and she appeared to understand, giving me a supportive smile and removing her hand.
We continued along the hall, Sienna’s twin guard-dogs a dozen yards behind, Sienna herself walking slowly to ensure I didn’t get worn out, but she didn’t have much experience with Walkers. A mere five minutes passed before the ache in my throat subsided. I knew the bruises would have faded a little too, it was only bullets and arrows which managed to bring a walker to their knees.
At the end of the cavernous hall, we reached a set of stairs that led up and around, along a tower wall. The clanking and tapping of the guards’ armor and heels drew to a stop as they contemplated our next move.
Without a glance backward, we followed the stairs up two flights, the tap of my boots on the stone risers echoing up and down the tower stairwell. Sienna’s guards maintained a decent distance.
At the landing we were halted by a giant metal door and two fierce looking guards.
Fierce Guard One scowled. “Counsel Sienna.”
He tipped his head the tiniest bit, as if deferring to her seniority, but there was a burning of some emotion in his eyes. Had it been malice, I may have been tempted to dispatch him then and the
re. But then, in my new position I wasn’t allowed the privilege of doing as I wanted.
“Hello Fes.” Syn’s smile was at loggerheads with his icy demeanor. “The Emissary of the Elders wished to see the view and I told her the battlements here provide an incomparable one.”
The two guards shifted away and Fes opened the door. He closed the door and attempted to follow us outside but Sienna turned and said, “We will be discussing private Senate and Treaty issues. I’m afraid you need to keep your distance.”
He paused, then took up position beside the door without a complaint. Behind the slit it was easy to see he wasn’t happy.
Sienna didn’t seem to care. She took my arm and began walking me toward the parapet. Black gravel crunched beneath our boots, and a cool breeze fanned my heated cheeks; a welcome relief.
Safe at the edge of the parapet, Sienna faced me, her eyes showing the strain of our recent encounter.
I sighed. “I was poisoned.”
“I figured as much.” She nodded, a dark look in her eyes. Her profile was shadowed, light from the torches cast strange accents on her bone structure, and yet they couldn’t erase her beauty. “Who?”
“Whoever it was used Logan’s form to trick me.” Anger strummed my vocal chords and I had to take a deep breath. “I don’t know for sure, but I’m beginning to suspect it was Andyr.”
Sienna’s eyes widened. “What makes you think that?”
I opened my fist and revealed the diamond clasp in my palm. Sharply angled, it looked like a naturally formed crystal but from the workmanship it was easy to tell that the gem was Fae and hand-carved. “When I first laid eyes on it, I knew it was familiar. I’d seen it only two days ago, on Elan, the Winter Prince.”
“The Fae Winter Prince?”
“That’s the one. And when I met Andyr this morning, I felt something familiar about him. I didn’t recognize the clasp. That was stupid.”
“Why would he think nobody would recognize it?” Sienna shook her head, perplexed.
I made a face. “Elan is arrogant. I doubt he’d have expected to meet anyone that he knew here in Drakys.”
Sienna tapped the black crystal of the parapet wall. We stood between two merlons, looking out at the dark valley. “This is too much. I think my head is going to explode.” She moved her hand to cradle her forehead.
The transformation must have taken its toll on her, even if she didn’t know it. Now, more than ever, I had to get her to leave with me.
I took her hand away from her head. “I’m here to help you.”
“Logan sent you.” She eyed me warily. “He said he would.”
I nodded, relieved I didn’t need to fight her.
“He made me promise to find you. To tell you about the danger you face here, and to ask you to come home to help him.”
She frowned and faced me, fear lighting the flame in her eyes. “Help him? What’s wrong with him? Is he okay?” Her hand was back on the wall, this time clutching the edge hard enough that the white of her knuckles gleamed.
I shook my head. “No. He’s in a coma. We don’t know how to save him and he wanted me to tell you to come to see him.”
She stared at me. “That makes no sense. How does he speak to you if he’s in a coma? How is he speaking to me?”
“His thoughts can still touch you, as long as you allow him in.” I smiled. “We used a DeathTalker to communicate. He showed me where you were in Sand Beach. And he’s in a coma, not dead.”
“That was you. I knew it.” She managed a brief smile. “The Goth look suits you. And I should have guessed considering goth had been my choice of disguise in Sand Beach.”
I nodded. “We came hoping to find you, but why did you try to have us killed?”
“What?” She gasped. “No. I did no such thing.”
“Someone did. After you left us at the diner, Lily was injured and I was too. Badly.”
She shook her head. “I go to Sand Beach sometimes to think. Not many people know that I go. I doubt it would be received with enthusiasm. My guards understand. They take me, watch over the portal and me. They trust me.”
“Clearly they don’t trust you enough. Whoever we encountered in Sand Beach were prepared to protect you to the death.”
“What do you mean?” she asked in a whisper.
“I killed someone there. A shadow mage.”
She looked confused. “I don’t know any shadow mages. Most human mages aren’t even allowed into Drakys.”
I frowned. “So if you don’t know who is protecting you, then maybe they aren’t protecting you as much as they’re keeping people from you. They must have seen us together at the beach or the diner, then targeted us after you left. Eliminating possible friends that may lure you away.”
She snorted. “I’m not that important. I advise the queen, yes, but I hardly warrant such drastic measures. Not killing, surely.” Confusion simmered in her tone.
“But you warrant a twenty-four-seven guard?”
Her shoulder lifted in a dainty shrug. “I do have a lot of state secrets up here.” She tapped her temple.
“And so does Andyr. You don’t see him guarded all day, do you?”
“Good point,” she said, her mouth twisting in a wry smile.
I sighed. “Something else is happening here, Sienna. Something we can’t yet understand. But whatever it is, it can wait. Right now, the most important thing as far as I am concerned is Logan. I need you to help me save him.” I stared at her, my voice pleading.
“How can I save him?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know. He’s a fire mage and you are brother and sister. Your fire is there somewhere, deep inside you.” I didn’t want to tell her that there was more than just fire lurking within her. But that didn’t stop me from probing. “Do you ever dream of strange, unusual things? Magical things?”
She stiffened, and even in the darkness I could see her face pale. “Like what?”
I lifted a shoulder. “I can’t be sure. Maybe fire? Being burned? Maybe you dream of throwing fireballs, or breathing fire.”
She nodded but her neck was tight as she shifted her gaze to the city lights. “Even if what you say is true, and my dreams do mean I have the same powers as Logan, how can I help him? What can I do?”
I wasn’t blind to the agony in her voice. Whatever bond she had with Logan, however tenuous, it was unbreakable. And filled with emotion.
“There are theories. That maybe your fire can help him heal. That just being with him will help him recover faster. Whatever happens, we will do everything we can to help you get back home and make this place safer for you.” I touched her arm, and she glanced back up at me.
“You don’t have to keep trying to convince me, Kailin. I will go back with you, if only to meet my brother.” I nodded. “I will do what I can to help him.”
I sighed with relief. “Thank you. You have no idea how happy I am to hear that.”
She patted my hand. “We do have a problem though. As much as I’d like to go back with you, I doubt the queen will allow it.”
“Then perhaps we don’t give her a choice?”
Sienna raised an eyebrow. “Let the games begin.”
Chapter 42
The next morning, Sienna fetched me early to grab a quick breakfast in the morning room before the Senate meeting. Although much smaller than the great dining room, the place was a miniature version, right down to the decor and the floor-to-ceiling window.
We’d barely swallowed coffee and a dark, almost black flaky pastry that reminded me of burnt croissants, when a guard entered and announced that the Senate was ready for me.
I held Horner’s leather folder tightly as I entered the room, ready to do battle with these stubborn men.
But I needn’t have worried.
The absence of Andyr was significant enough to confirm my suspicions, and inquiries as to his whereabouts received a number of vague and evasive responses.
The Queen Regent sat at the hea
d of the table, a mere puppet to the gathered Senate, her skin pale and tight as she nodded and smiled, all the while exuding a quiet fury. Beside her sat General Vyrian, who I was surprised to see with a seat on the Senate. It would have made sense had he been the queen’s brother, so perhaps he was family.
All points on the list were agreed to, the Senate stating that they required a paired management system for each mine, one overseer for the Elders and one for the Senate to maintain transparency.
Decisions of sale prices were deferred to a later date, but at the end, I thought the Elders would be happy with my progress.
I’d done my part.
As the General got to his feet, effectively dismissing me, I cleared my throat. “I do have one small request.” He raised a bushy eyebrow. “I’d like a tour of the mine. Just so I can brief the Elders on what we need to help upgrade in terms of machinery. If that were required.”
“I’m happy to show Kailin around, if that’s okay with you?” Sienna asked. In the face of the table filled with mostly unreadable faces, I could feel her concern that they may decline.
The General cleared his throat. “I’m afraid the queen wishes to see you first. In private.” He gave Queen Lyra a hesitant glance then met Sienna’s eyes with what looked like fatherly sympathy.
Was nobody really who they first appeared to be?
The room emptied and I followed the men out, spending the next few minutes pacing the stone floor while Sienna spoke to the queen.
Less than five minutes later, she stalked from the room, her cheeks red. The look she gave me announced trouble.
“You may have to miss out on your trip to the mine.” Her voice was filled with anger and frustration, her spine stiff as she grabbed hold of my arm and pulled me down the hallway.
“What’s the matter?” I hissed.
Sienna looked over her shoulder. Her guards were about twenty feet behind us so she lowered her voice and said, “If you want to get me out of here, we need to do it now. Andyr moved up the wedding date. The Queen just told me to get my affairs in order. I will be married in three days.”
