Silk and Earth (Sisters of the North Book 2)

by Mara Amberly

  Cassia reassured her sister. “It’s alright.” Glancing over at Ariane, she saw the battle mage had relaxed her stance, though she still looked irritated.

  “I just don’t like surprises,” Ariane admitted.

  “At least we have an idea where we stand now,” Knave explained, hoping to ease tensions between the ladies. “Let’s see how it looks when we get there.”

  “You don’t suppose there’s a manse there, do you?” Cassia asked, as Alexa’s description had mystical attributes that wouldn’t be out of place, were it there.

  “I’m not sure,” Alexa replied, shrugging slightly. “It’s possible the people who killed the families living in the tunnels took it?”

  “They could be connected,” Ariane agreed, “but it’s hard to say. We should be careful around the guardian in case it was responsible.”

  “I don’t believe it was,” Alexa said. “I sensed… purity almost from the deer. I think the killers were human, because they used knives and swords. My feeling is that people are our biggest concern or perhaps that the guardian might view us as an enemy.

  Once we’ve finished eating, let’s get packed up. It shouldn’t take us long to get there.”

  ***

  The walk passed quickly, and they noticed more signs of vegetation as they got closer to the tree from Alexa’s empathic vision. The ground was still parched, but it was clear that this wasn’t a desert landscape. Patches of earth were stained a rusty red, which almost seemed to glow beneath the cloudy blue sky. The day had warmed up, and so had Knave, Cassia, Alexa and Ariane from the walking.

  Alexa couldn’t help but glance at every tree ahead of them, but she was yet to find the one from her vision. Closing her eyes, she reached out with her senses and realised they’d gone off track a little. It was almost due north of them now, and not far.

  “Stop for a moment,” Alexa told the others, opening her eyes. “We need to go this way,” she said, indicating the direction.

  The ground distantly dropped down into a rugged valley with a rocky landscape. Small trees and plants grew, but nothing that seemed to match the priestess’s vision.

  “That’s it?” Cassia asked, a little disappointed.

  “I don’t think it is,” Alexa said, studying the terrain. “I think that’s what someone wants us to see.”

  Knave grinned. He seemed like he was going to say something snarky, but he kept it to himself.

  “I have confidence in you, Alexa. Why don’t we take a closer look and see what’s out there?”

  She nodded to him, brushing back a strand of hair that had freed itself from her plait. “I still sense the guardian near the tree.”

  The way down was smooth at first – a hillside where scattered blades of grass grew, but it became rockier and more precarious climbing down as they descended into the valley. There was no sign as yet of the tree.

  “Wait,” Cassia called out. She was ahead of the others, though Ariane had taken a slightly different route down the hillside. “I can see some movement among the rocks.” She pointed to the place where she’d seen it.

  The others’ attention turned to the area, searching for signs of movement too.

  “Do you know what it was?” Alexa asked, thinking it might be about time to put up that barrier shield.

  “I’m not sure. I only saw it for a moment. It might’ve been scaly,” she answered. “Like a lizard.”

  “Oh, is that all?” Knave asked.

  Something burst from the rocks in front of him and he backpedalled.

  Dust showered the ground in front of them as the animal beat its leathery wings. It hung in the air, as scaly as Cassia had described. It wasn’t fully-grown; in fact, it was barely larger than a Wolfhound or maybe a Kallean Rottweiler.

  “Ooh my,” Alexa exclaimed, reluctant to move too much in case she startled the animal.

  It wasn’t attacking them, but if this was a young dragon – and she thought it was, then it was believed they could billow flame.

  She spoke calmly, trying to reassure the creature. “It’s alright. We’re not going to harm you.”

  Its scales were grey-brown in colour and it had one yellow cat-like eye. The other eye was sealed shut with a healing scar, suggesting it had probably lost its eye. Its long tail had smaller, more intricate scales, as well as barbs that protruded from several places.

  Alexa felt a sudden rush of air around her, and a glance in Ariane’s direction confirmed the battle mage had cast a protective barrier between them and the dragonling. She couldn’t discern the barrier’s exact dimensions, so she wasn’t sure the young dragon couldn’t fly around or above it. Ariane ought to be able to adapt it as necessary.

  “It’s alright,” Alexa soothed, as she tried to calm the young dragon. She wondered how it had come to be there, and if there might be others around. She’d only sensed one guardian, so perhaps the white deer of her mind’s eye was in fact the dragon.

  “I’m Alexa, and I sensed you here,” she explained.

  It was a risk, but she closed her eyes for a moment and reached out with her mind. She immediately sensed a powerful mental presence in front of her. She still saw a deer in her mind, which was strange because the dragon was in the air.

  She took a deep breath, while Cassia and Knave watched her with concern. Knave gestured to Cassia to leave, but she subtly shook her head. She was concerned she would interrupt something Alexa was doing if she moved.

  Alexa tried to understand the feelings she sensed from the dragon. It was curious but wary, and as she probed further, she sensed fear. It thought she might’ve come to kill it and finish the job someone had started when they’d slashed its eye.

  “Oh, I’m sorry,” she murmured, as she realised what it was feeling. “We’re not here to hurt you.”

  She conveyed her thoughts to the dragon as she spoke them.

  “We want to make sure the manses are safe so the bad people can’t use them.”

  Alexa felt its anger rise when she thought of the manses.

  The dragon was confused and defensive, and she realised it thought they’d come to steal a manse. It must be protecting one… or had been.

  It swooped down toward Knave and Cassia.

  “Oh shite–” Cassia gasped.

  But it bounced off the barrier Ariane had set in place and glared at them through it with its one yellow eye.

  “No,” Alexa intoned, and she spoke the word clearly with her mind so the dragon would hear her. “We are not those bad people. They killed our kind and we want to make sure they can’t hurt anybody else. Did they take the manse?”

  A strong voice replied, which felt young but alien to her senses. “Yes, it’s gone and they fed mother to the manse.”

  Alexa’s eyes widened in horror. “I’m so sorry,” she exclaimed in compassion and sadness.

  She sensed the dragon’s despair and massive feelings of loss, which was how she’d felt when the Sisters of Destiny were slain. She let the dragon sense her feelings too, so that it – she was sure it was a he – would better understand her.

  “Just a moment,” she told the dragon, and then opened her eyes.

  Cassia and Knave were watching it, and he noticeably jumped when he realised she was looking at him.

  Alexa grinned at that, but her eyes were pained and she still felt great sadness.

  “A manse was taken from here, and the dragon told me its mother was fed to it. Do any of you know what that means?”

  Cassia shook her head. “It doesn’t sound good .Some kind of evil magick?”

  Nearby, Ariane’s eyes widened. “It means they’re using lives to power it. They’re a massive source of energy, but they must be twisting it with dark magick.”

  Alexa had a feeling that might be the case, but it was disconcerting to have it confirmed.

  “So the manse in their possession is likely to be powerful and charged enough to wreak havoc?” Cassia asked.

  “I’d say so, if it contains the life energy
of a dragon,” Ariane answered.

  Knave grimaced. “So what happens to the people who are sacrificed to it?”

  The dragon must’ve been listening, because Alexa heard it answer in her mind.

  “Gone.”

  She felt so much desolation from the dragon as she conveyed its message.

  “The dragon says they’re gone and it means forever.”

  Chapter 10

  Cerus slept fitfully in his room at the palace. The hilt of his knife protruded from beneath the side of his pillow, as he dreamed of schemes and machinations, and the boat-man who’d transported him to the island. In his dream, the man couldn’t be trusted – in fact, no one could. It mightn’t have been far from the truth.

  The first rays of dawn hadn’t yet broken the horizon. Something stirred Cerus from his sleep, though it took time for him to realise what it was. His hand slipped beneath his pillow, gripping his knife as he tried to figure out what wasn’t right. As he awakened further, he realised there was a breeze in the room. It was strange as he’d been careful to lock the windows and door before he went to bed. He wondered if there might be a secret passage.

  When he opened his eyes, he saw the King seated in a chair by his bed, watching him. The man looked to be alone, and Cerus wondered how he’d got in.

  “Your Majesty?” he asked, as he sat up, leaving his knife beneath his pillow. His expression was sheepish. Cerus didn’t like being caught off-balance like this, especially by the King.

  Of course, there were very few others he would’ve accepted turning up in his chambers in the middle of the night unannounced.

  “That’s right, Cerus. I thought we might take an opportunity to talk alone.”

  The Governor blinked as his eyes adjusted to the dim light. “That sounds like a good idea to me, Sire.”

  “I believe a young lady paid you a visit earlier this evening. Miss Laurelyn Black?”

  Cerus nodded at the King’s question. “That’s right. She’s in your employ?”

  Confirming the Governor’s thought, King Merrion nodded. “That she is, and so are a lot of other people. The Nemorans have been trying to sway my running of the kingdom. They tried to poison me and kidnap Princess Sophia. That’s why my wife and children are no longer here at the palace.”

  Cerus was appalled. “Your Majesty, I don’t know what to say to that, except that it can’t be allowed to continue. I am but one man, but I promise to help you bring an end to these men, should you feel it’s the appropriate course of action.”

  The King was pleased by Cerus’s response. “They’ve infiltrated my court and they’ve made it known that if I don’t comply with their demands, they’ll murder me and my family. I’ve noticed those around me have begun feeding me watered-down reports of recent events, when they know I want to be kept informed. I’m not sure if they’re Nemorans, or if they’re being blackmailed or threatened. It makes it so much harder to run the kingdom effectively.”

  With a nod, Cerus considered the King’s position. He’d assumed failure and weakness of the King’s leadership, but King Merrion was only one man, and there was a great deal that figured into his decision-making.

  “What do you need of me, Sire?” Cerus asked.

  He would follow through on the King’s orders, so long as it truly was the King he was speaking to. This looked like King Merrion. He sounded like him, but many of the Nemorans were sorcerers and Cerus wanted to be sure he wasn’t being manipulated.

  “Be ready when the time comes. I’ll make it known or Jacob, the Captain of the Guard, will contact you.”

  Cerus nodded. “I mean no offense, Sire, but you are definitely you, yes?”

  King Merrion laughed, but then his expression settled into a sigh. “I am, but how does a man prove such a thing?”

  “Well… there was something you said to me once when you discovered I once courted Queen Leiana,” Cerus told him.

  He nodded, but hesitated momentarily. “I told you that you were a fool for thinking she would marry you, when she could marry me and be my Queen.”

  Cerus winced. “Oh yeah, that was it.”

  The King grimaced, but he was pleased to have passed the test. “I’m glad we’re clear, and not about that. I’m sorry for what happened back then. I like to think that I’ve grown wiser and kinder with the years. If I could take back my behaviour at the time, I would.”

  Cerus nodded; never expecting such an apology from the King.

  “Thank you, Sire,” he said, smiling for the first time.

  He wondered if the King might have said it because he wanted his help, but Cerus had asked the question that initiated the apology. The truth was, Cerus hadn’t been able to entirely get over those events, even after so many years. Perhaps now he could find closure and accept the woman he’d loved was now the Queen of Maeridea.

  “I’ll be ready when you need me to be.” With that promise, Cerus accepted that he would be remaining at the palace for now and that he might have men to kill in the near future.

  ***

  The next morning, Cerus was woken by a knock on his door. He might have thought the visit from King Merrion was merely a dream, but his window was open a hand span, and the chair the King had used rested by the side of his bed.

  After arming himself with his knife and climbing from the bed, Cerus removed the chair he’d placed against the door after the King left. He opened the door to find a messenger waiting.

  The elderly man had a red pin on his coat, shaped like a scroll. It was their identifying characteristic.

  “Governor Cerus Arani?” he asked, a letter in hand.

  “That’s right,” Cerus answered cautiously.

  The man handed over the message, thanked him and quickly left.

  Cerus thought it lucky that a different messenger had been called to deliver it than the boss of Luke; the one who’d died in Kalle.

  He closed the door, flipping the lock in place, and then tore open the envelope.

  There was a note inside on the same thin white paper his brother used. There had been no mark or seal on the outside, other than his name written in Luca’s familiar handwriting.

  Unfolding the letter, he quickly skimmed through the message.

  “Dear Brother,

  I write to you because a scribe came to my door last night looking for you – a man named Semmic.

  It was clear there was some bad blood between you, but Semmic chanced upon a message that may be of some concern to you. A young man he didn’t recall seeing before sent a letter to Sean Craedon – I remember you saying he was one of King Merrion’s advisors. The letter named you as a cause for concern and suggested Sean remove the threat.

  Now, it seems strange to me that the sender of the message would be so open in his intent to harm you and passed it through insecure channels, but there you have it. Semmic showed me the letter and it appeared genuine.

  Perhaps Semmic thought he would have little chance of being reimbursed for the loss of the deceased messenger if you were killed or he was trying to earn your goodwill.

  I want to ensure this message reaches you, so you have the opportunity to make of it what you will in a timely manner. The other letter won’t be delivered. I made sure of that.

  Be well and don’t die. My studies are going well.

  Your brother,

  Luca”

  Cerus frowned, wondering if the obvious could be true and whether Sean Craedon might be working for the Nemorans. He’d suspected the man’s guilt, if only because of the King’s two advisors, the younger of the two – Jason Veryon – seemed the least likely to betray the King.

  Now he had to wonder if someone wanted him to believe this or if they hoped the letter might be used to incriminate Sean. He decided to put a stop to that right now, though he sensed he might regret it later.

  He read back through Luca’s message several times, before taking it over to one of the lamps, and setting the corner aflame. From there, he set it in the fireplace and
watched it burn until mere ashes remained. Only time would tell if Sean Craedon was indeed his enemy or merely a scapegoat.

  Chapter 11

  The young dragon perched atop a rocky ledge above a hollowed out recess in the ground. Tree roots twined through the solid red rock, seemingly dead, but Alexa’s senses told her the tree was still alive and almost humming with spiritual energy. She was certain the manse had been housed here, especially in light of what the dragonling had told her. She feared the manse would never be the same as it had once been. It had been charged through evil methods, and that might have tainted its power and fundamental nature.

  This place felt ancient, just as the manse must have been. She wondered what had happened to the old world it was a part of. Somehow the thought saddened her, just as she felt for the dragon’s loss and the Sisters of Destiny who were slain. The young dragon probably would’ve become the manse’s protector when fully grown. All it had now were its memories of what was taken from it: its mother and its purpose.

  Alexa reached out with her mind, calming the dragon. She reminded it that it wasn’t alone and she was there.

  Turning to the others, she wondered how to raise the subject.

  “Would you be opposed to the dragon joining us?” she asked, noticing the look of surprise on the others’ faces.

  Cassia grinned. “Actually, that’s not a bad idea, but we’re not going to blend into the town successfully if we have a dragon.”

  Knave was clearly disconcerted by the idea but he studied the dragon with interest.

  “I get the feeling this is about more than bringing a pathetic creature with us?”

  There was a soft growl from between the dragon’s teeth and Knave took an involuntary step back. “It understands me?”

  Alexa nodded. “It understands through me, but I’m not sure if it would without me. It can read my thoughts; perhaps yours as well.”

  Knave rubbed his chin; an expression of worry on his face. He hoped the animal wouldn’t try to kill him in his sleep for some of the thoughts he’d had. “Good to know.”