The Five

by Nhys Glover

  It had worked. I’d brought them together, even if it was at my own expense.

  But I couldn’t let them see I’d won, so I huffed again and turned my back on both of them, to go greet Spot and mount up.

  If Landor was afraid to ride Bay this morning, now he’d gotten a proper look at her, he didn’t show it. He wrapped Zem’s tunic around his head and copied what Zem and I did by way of greeting—rubbing our bodies against the furred side and neck of our airlings and letting them rub their heads against us. Once he’d allowed that tentative exchange, he’d jumped lithely up onto Bay’s huge back and clamped her horns in his tight fists. It was the only sign he showed that he was anything but happy to be riding the skies again.

  “Have you read about airlings?” I asked, curious about his knowledge of the creatures I took so much for granted.

  He shook his head. “When I saw them last night—monstrous shadows against the dark sky—I thought them creatures from my worst nightmares. But when you seemed relieved at the sight of them, joyous even, I assumed they were not there to devour me. Getting up here like this... Well, let it be enough to say that if a mob of angry men with torches had not been coming down on us, I would never have approached this big beastling, no less ridden it into the sky.” He patted Bay’s tan shoulder as if they were old friends. “Luckily, in the daylight, they are not nearly as frightening. And I get a warm feeling from them. Is that normal?”

  “Not normal, but some of us do feel them. I’m glad you’re one of us in that way.”

  There was no more time for talking. The airlings rose to their feet and took to the sky in a rush of wind and power. I couldn’t hold back my grin as that wind brushed my cheeks and sent tendrils of loose hair back from my face.

  Glancing over to see how Landor was handling his second ride, I found him staring at me, his expression unreadable. I grinned more broadly and let go of the horns, throwing my hands over my head and yelling out with pure joy.

  Was I showing off? Probably. But I also felt... exaltation at what we’d achieved. The night before last, when I’d awoken from that nightmare, I’d felt hopeless and overwhelmed. How could we find, no less save, such a poor, broken creature?

  Now, mere turns later, we had done that and more. And Landor was no poor creature to be pitied and shielded from the world, he was every bit our equal. And I felt... a completeness. No, not complete... but as if one more piece of me was being returned.

  So, aye, I yelled like a crazy woman and let the wind and the sky have me. And I felt wonderful!

  We arrived back at our barracks just before midday. A few of the riders were in the paddock when we landed and stared curiously at our companion. He was worth staring at. He sat regally atop Bay, as if he’d been riding for suns, his pale skin and hair hidden from view by Zem’s burned and ragged tunic. Only his hands were visible, and I noted with horror how they’d burned red and blistered.

  Gods, we should have thought to cover his hands too.

  Landor slid off Bay’s back, rubbed his body against hers in gratitude, and joined Zem and me at the gate. The other riders had congregated there to greet us and throw curious glances Landor’s way. He, in turn, stared at them—all young, fit men from a variety of backgrounds.

  Once under cover, Landor removed the tunic from his head and our fellow-riders got to see him properly for the first time. Mouths fell open and closed with conscious effort. Tall, elegant and regally pale, he was unlike anyone any of us had ever seen before. Oh, aye, he was going to cause a stir.

  “Airsha is here, I assume,” I said, addressing Ralic who had still not closed his gaping mouth. He’d witnessed the Goddess’ message and was looking from Landor’s white face to his wrist, where the brand looked glaringly red. Mine was nowhere near as harsh, nor was Zem’s. Maybe Landor’s skin was more sensitive to more things than just the sun.

  Ralic nodded, gulping back his nerves. “He’s one of you?”

  Zem spoke up stiffly. “He is. And we have two more to find. Any word of the missing royal and his traitorous followers?”

  Again Ralic shook his head. “The Goddess and her harem are in a meeting with the governors now.”

  Zem glanced at Landor and me. “I suppose they’ll want to meet Landor and see the marks for themselves. There’ll be a few who’ll be unwilling to believe the danger facing us.”

  We made a stop at our rooms to wash and change and find Landor new clothes. I wanted to call a healer for Landor’s hands immediately, but Zem quashed the idea.

  “They will likely cover his brand. He can be seen to after the meeting.”

  “I can heal myself. I just need a few moments with my hands free. It can wait,” Landor announced with dignity.

  “But it must hurt...” I argued.

  “A little. Do not fuss over me, Flea. I am not a childling.”

  He sounded annoyed with me, and I couldn’t help feeling hurt. I turned to Zem, who seemed to be annoyed with me, too.

  With a huff, I took off at a run, leaving Zem to guide Landor to the Governance Hall, the Godling’s old Audience Hall, where Airsha would now be meeting with the Chancellor and her fellow representatives on the council. I’d had dealings with many of them, including Chancellor Moyna herself, at different times, and I was unimpressed by them. They were little people puffed up by their own unexpected good fortune and importance, and they were making the most of it. Only Julz’s firm hand and Airsha’s careful oversight kept them from turning the new government into just a different version of the old structure we’d fought so hard to overthrow.

  The two men had caught up to me by the time I reached the hall. Guards on the doors barred our way.

  “The council is sitting. You cannot enter now,” one of the monstrous men said, with a gleam of recognition in his eye for Zem and me, but a cautionary glare for Landor.

  “They’ll want to see us. Tell Airsha we’re here,” I told him, trying not to sound too impudent. Using Airsha’s name, rather than her title of Goddess Incarnate, was borderline offensive. Only the fact that I was known to be her close friend saved me from a sound thrashing.

  The man grunted his agreement, as if he’d done his duty by trying to get in our way, and he could now leave it to Airsha to put us in our place.

  We waited for the guard to return. He did so moments later, ushering us in with a long-suffering sigh. I grinned at him as I passed.

  Chapter Twelve

  The hall was a significant step up from the meeting room at the old enemy stronghold, where I’d once read minds for Darkin to determine if any there were responsible for Airsha’s disappearance. This space was designed to showcase the magnificence of the Godling to all who came to petition him. Gold encrusted statues and columns littered the room, huge stained glass windows allowed bright coloured light to beam down on fancy marble flooring. The walls not filled with windows were covered with murals of legendary scenes of past battles.

  Into this gaudy display, stone tiered seats had been installed, rising steeply up in a semi-circle around the small dais at the front. It was definitely a more formidable seating arrangement than the wooden benches the rebels had used at the stronghold. The stone itself screamed permanence. And comfort, if the velvet covered cushions adorning both seat and backrest were as good as they looked.

  Airsha had pride of place sanding at the front, with Darkin and Jaron flanking her. Rama and Calun sat in the front row nearby, their faces tense. It was not going too well, then.

  As we entered the room, Airsha turned to greet us with a stiff smile. “Ah, just in time. And you have found the first of the other champions, I see.”

  “Woman, you go too far!” A corpulent, overdressed royal announced from the middle tier. I wasn’t sure who he was addressing. Me? Certainly not Airsha.

  “You are out of order,” Moyna declared, sending the man a furious glare.

  “I do not care. This is a farce! Fanciful tales of monsters imprisoned in the underworld, and now this, this... abomination is
brought before us. I will not have it, I say. Get rid of it! Now!” The man flung out his arm toward Landor as he spat out his indignant words.

  The room erupted. Representatives jumped to their feet yelling and screaming abuse at each other, and Airsha stood staring at them, unfazed but clearly disappointed.

  “I should...” Landor began, taking in the chaos.

  “If you say go I will hit you,” I warned him, my own fury rising. How dare that pumped-up little weed call Landor an ‘abomination’! Clearly, he was a royal firmly on the old Godling’s side in the war. No one from the rebel camp would bandy that word around so easily. At least a handful of the men in the room had been Abs, and the women present were all mages, considered abominations by the Godling and his followers.

  “Don’t doubt it my friend. When her dander is up, watch out!” Zem agreed, with amusement. I growled at him.

  Suddenly, the room fell silent and people everywhere grabbed for their throats. Airsha looked over at a young man sitting quietly in the corner and nodded her gratitude.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, please resume your seats and settle down. Your voices will be returned to you shortly. But I have no time for your performances today. You will behave or you will be removed,” Airsha announced, in a voice that was little more than a whisper, but which roared out around the silent room. Everyone took notice, even the fat royal.

  “And you, sir. I do not know your name. Clearly, you are new to the government. But I am always addressed as Goddess or Chosen One, not woman. And certainly not in that tone of voice.” She turned her steely glare on the fat royal who had visibly shrunk back into his seat, still grasping at his throat.

  “As to that so-called abomination. You are on very shaky ground using that term here. If you knew the backgrounds of many of the other representatives sitting around you, you would know that that word has been applied to many of us at different times in the past. The man you are currently meeting is no more an abomination than you are. Mayhap less. And he will save your sorry hide from The Jayger, whether you approve of him or not.”

  “So, if you cannot keep a civil tongue in your mouth you will be removed from office. You have no standing here, other than what the Goddess grants you. And I speak for the Goddess. Do I make myself clear?”

  Everyone in the room, including the fat royal nodded. Airsha nodded at the small man in the front row and people began clearing their throats and whispering. I had never met this particular Ab, but I’d heard of him. And his magic was clearly useful in situations like this.

  “May I resume?” Airsha asked in mock humility. Again people nodded, many with thunderous scowls.

  “I apologise for pulling rank on you. But sometimes you forget who demanded the change in government and who was responsible for bringing it about. The Goddess will not allow your petty posturing to subvert Her Will, and certainly not at a time like this.”

  She let her words settle in, and I knew they hit the mark. They were like rowdy children who needed to be pulled into line. Even Moyna looked a little cowed.

  It was easy to look past the tiny young woman at the front of the room. I had underestimated her myself once, long ago. I learned my mistake fast enough. Even without the Goddess behind her, Airsha was a formidable woman.

  “Flea, Zem, can you tell us about the man you have brought here to meet us. Mayhap you can show the mark on your wrists too, so these fine governors can see what the Goddess has wrought.”

  Zem looked at me and nodded. He was a better speaker than me, but shyness could claim him at the oddest times. So I was used to speaking for us both in large crowds.

  The three of us moved forward as one, and I turned to address the gathering. “At the moment the Goddess began to tell us of the approaching danger, our wrists began to sting. The Goddess marked us as her champions with her symbol.” I held out my wrist and the two men at my side did the same. A few indrawn breaths could be heard.

  “Zem and I knew we were chosen, but we had no idea what other mages had also received the mark. In a dream that night I saw this man... Landor Geal, imprisoned in a dark room by a madwoman. And I knew I had to find him, even though I could not believe someone so ill-treated could be of use to us or the Goddess.

  “The priests of the Godling had made it a practise to witness the births of all nobles, and to record them. If a child didn’t meet their high standards, those babes were killed. And though there was nothing physically wrong with Landor at birth, other than a rare condition that made his skin and hair colourless, he was marked for death. His aunt took him away to carry out the death sentence but, instead, consigned him to a secret prison as a monster.

  I looked at Landor then, sorry to have to be telling his story this way. But these powerful people needed to understand. I would at least keep his sexual abuse to myself. That humiliation he didn’t deserve.

  “This man had never seen the light of day, nor spoken to another living soul beside his aunt. All he knew of the world was what he’d read about in books. And yet he grew into a compassionate, strong and powerful healer. The Goddess in Her Wisdom chose him as one of Her champions. Chose us. And if and when we must go up against this monstrous evil the Goddess calls The Jayger, we will defeat him and send him back where he came from.”

  For a moment after I finished talking, there was silence, and many eyes turned to stare at Landor with curiosity and even some compassion.

  Moyna spoke up first. “Air Mistress Fellica, thank you for finding this champion. How do you plan to find the others, and how will you defeat this Jayger?”

  “I assume at least one of the mages you’ve called back to the Capital will have the mark. All we know of them is that they are powerful magical sons. I can’t imagine too many others like Landor exist outside the government’s net. We all serve the Goddess as we are instructed.”

  “Magical sons have harems. From what this... the Chosen One has implied, you will make a harem of these mages instead.” The fat royal really didn’t learn his lesson easily. But at least he’d refrained from insulting Airsha by calling her woman this time. “That is unheard of. And I for one consider it offensive, not to mention counterproductive!”

  It was Moyna’s turn to speak up. “Representative Gormin, what you find offensive is your problem. Many elemental mistresses have male harems, just as their male counterparts do. Yes, it is unusual that four elemental masters will form Fellica’s harem, but this is a unique situation and one the Goddess has clearly decreed. They will be a fighting unit, not a procreating one. Mayhap they will go their separate ways when this current challenge is overcome.

  “Whatever the case, it is not our right to be offended. As the Goddess Incarnate has pointed out, we fought to right the wrongs the Godling and the priests of the false gods perpetrated, and we succeeded because the Goddess was with us. And remains with us, in Airsha. She knows better than any of us what needs to happen to keep us safe.”

  Gormin opened his mouth, as if to speak again, but glares from men close to him had him closing it again.

  “Thank you, Air Mistress Fellica, Air Master Zem and Earth Master Landor, you may take your leave,” Moyna told us, taking back the reins of her government a little too pointedly. “I imagine you have much to do locating your final members. But there will be a special ball given in your honour tonight. Please make yourselves available. I would like to know more about your plans then.”

  I glanced at Airsha and she rolled her eyes and nodded. “You all need to take rooms in my apartment.”

  We gave small bows and turned to leave. I heard Landor let out a breath he’d obviously been holding for some time.

  “I thought I was facing yet another angry mob,” he said, with amusement as well as a great deal of relief in his deep voice.

  “That fat bastard made a big mistake using the A word with those people. Did you know that was what the Godslunders called Airsha: the greatest Abomination of all? And the Godling had collected up magical sons not born to him and turn
ed them into his secret army called the Abominations. When they joined us they called themselves Abs. Airsha and the Abs were a force to be reckoned with in that final battle.”

  “As was the airling army,” Zem pointed out, not without a little pride.

  I grinned at him. “Oh, aye, we did our share.”

  “There was an airling army?” Landor asked in astonishment. “Those creatures seem very gentle to me.”

  “They are. But the Goddess asked them to join our war and they did. After it was over they went back to their own lives. Only a few remained with their humans. We were lucky Storm and Spot were two who chose to stay.”

  “And the one I rode?”

  “That’s Bay. Airsha belongs to her. I imagine Airsha sent her to us. She gets these Knowings every so often that can be very useful.”

  Later that evening, after we each took turns bathing in the huge bath that was more like a small pool, we made ready for the unnecessary social gathering. Surely, we had better things to be doing than prancing around in fine clothing at a ball? We had to stop The Jayger. We had to look for our two missing mages. But Airsha insisted that all was in motion and this gathering played a part in paving the way for further political manoeuvring.

  Airsha and her men had their own bath, which was lucky because they monopolised it all afternoon. Airsha, it seemed, was very stressed after the meeting and needed plenty of relaxation. Bathing was more than just bathing to them.

  I was not ready to make bathing more than that for me. But I had agreed to share a room with Zem, which had Airsha’s brows rising and a big smug smile crossing her lips. I could just hear her saying, ‘I told you so’, in her mind.

  A beautiful gown had arrived at my sleeping room door, and silk tunics and breeches for the men. I reluctantly donned it, feeling vulnerable in a way breeches never made me feel. I knew it was because my mother dressed me prettily like this when she wanted to attract one of those awful men as a mark. And I’d worn one when I tried to con Airshin. Dresses made me a girl and girls were vulnerable.