The Shadowglass

by Rin Chupeco

  “You did it on purpose,” she seethed, her voice cutting deeper than the Deathseeker’s knives of wind.

  Lord Fox smiled grimly before the azi obscured them from my view.

  I don’t remember how long the battle lasted. I cowered behind the Deathseekers as they wove rune after rune after rune, blanketing the sky with barriers invisible to my eyes. Occasionally, I caught sight of a flare of debris when it came into contact with those magical shields, the way a sword’s tip might drag against another blade and send up sparks. I huddled with the wounded and injured, scrabbling to bring them closer to the blockade the Odalians had erected, hoping that no wayward rune or daeva attack would find us. I could no longer see the trio; the azi and the savul still blocked my sight, snapping and slicing at anyone or anything that drew too close.

  The zarich won its war against the flames. Smoke rose from the mountains, and the Drychta who were still unchanged staggered out coughing, averting their faces, lifting their hands to plead surrender. Only the blighted continued their losing fight, assaulting the combined armies until every last one of them were killed.

  Bereft of enemies, all the daeva—save for the azi—turned their backs on us and moved rapidly toward the sea. They waded in with little preamble. The waves washed over their heads, and they were gone before we could react.

  Were they running away, I wondered, or toward something else?

  It was only when one of the Gorvekai—Solveiga—nudged me gently with her foot that I realized that the battle was over. “The Faceless has gone too far this time,” she said soberly. “To change a nation of people into abominations—now do you understand why the strongest is not always the worthiest?”

  There were heavy casualties on both sides of the conflict. Many of the soldiers had been ripped apart by the beasts, but among the blighted, none survived. The still-human Drychta, now docile, sat on the ground, watched over by a group of asha. General Lode questioned one, and the prisoner was all too eager to respond.

  “Aadil is missing” came his terse report. “They do not know if he still remains in the mountains.”

  “He does not.” The Dark asha stood before us, her face smudged from dirt and ash. Her familiars stood beside her. The generals and commanders of the army lifted their swords as one, watching the bone witch with distrust. Only Khalad and Lord Agnarr were nonplussed.

  The horrific wound on Lord Fox’s chest that would have been mortal on anyone else had vanished. “I remembered this,” the familiar said. “On Mithra’s Wall—you reached out to me—”

  “So it was you back then,” she said, and her voice broke my heart. “I wondered if I had dreamed it out of longing. Or if I’d gone insane, as you feared.”

  “Tea—”

  She stepped away. “Don’t,” she begged. “Later. Please.”

  Her brother’s mouth curved down at the corners, scowling, worried.

  She smiled wanly at King Kance. “Drycht,” she says, “is kingless.”

  “Did you kill him, Tea?”

  “We have very different interpretations of what death means, Your Majesty.”

  “Tea, you look unwell. Please, let me—”

  “Nothing is happening that shouldn’t be, Your Majesty.” She moved toward her azi. “I must go.”

  “No!” Lord Fox grabbed her arm. “You will not leave until I’ve had every answer out of you!”

  “Fox is right.” The Odalian noble was tired and adamant. “We have many questions—”

  The Dark asha laughed. We were all taken aback by the unnaturally loud, high-pitched strangeness of it. “Have you finally decided to take my head, Your Majesty?”

  “I am more interested in your answers.”

  “And if I refuse?”

  “Do not make it harder for us, Tea.”

  “On the contrary, it will be quite easy.”

  Lethargy stole into my bones. My lips moved, but no sound came out. I could not walk. I could not speak. Instead, my knees sank of their own volition into the hard soil. I saw King Kance’s eyes widen as he did the same. So did the generals and soldiers, the wounded and the healthy, the asha and the Deathseekers. The bone witch’s mark was on us all, and we were helpless in the face of her Compulsion. Only the Gorvekai remained on their feet, proving their duplicity. Lord Fox was upright too, but he made no move.

  The bone witch let out a gasp, her hand flying to her chest. Lord Kalen took her in his arms, his own face grim and strained. “You’re overexerting yourself again, love.”

  She grinned wanly. “Nothing you wouldn’t have done in my place.”

  “What are you doing, Tea?” Lord Fox whispered.

  “What you wouldn’t let me do if you had your way.”

  “Tea!” Lady Zoya burst through the crowd but stumbled and fell to the ground as well, her hand dropping. Still she mustered strength to blister the air with words. “Let—us—go! You cannot do this!”

  “Zoya. For once in your life, shut up and listen. You want answers?” The Lady Tea’s voice rose, mocking. “You shall have them. You intend to invade Drycht after this victory at the Hollows, to depose Aadil once and for all. Instead, you will face civilians and innocents with the blight. As soon as the first of you sets foot on Drychta soil, they will turn, and you will find nothing to save, only a city of monsters hungering for your flesh. Druj has cast a large net. The Faceless will have the people suffer to kill as many of you as needed. Druj doesn’t intend this to be a war—he intends it to be a massacre.”

  21

  To his credit, King Kance said nothing of my pale, tear-streaked face, though his heartsglass beat quick, erratic patterns of blue. He had drawn his sword during the battle, its tip bloody, and I wondered if he’d been fighting long, though it was doubtful that General Lode would allow many to get past him.

  The bulk of the casualties had fallen to the Drychta, but many of the Odalians were caught in the indar’s deadly acid attack. One look at their heartsglass was enough for me to gauge fatal wounds from the less grievous, and it was a difficult task to move from one fallen fighter to the next, compelling them into sleep knowing they would never wake.

  Likh had the runic wards wrapped around herself again as she bustled about, dressing as many of the soldiers’ wounds as she was able to. She, Khalad, and I all knelt side by side, tending to patients as Kalen and Kance remained deep in conversation, planning their next move. General Lode was coordinating transport to send the wounded back to Odalia, where they would receive better treatment in better facilities.

  Althy had helped arrange most of those travel details. Now she was on the other side of the camp, healing other wounded. The older asha had taken great pains to avoid me since she’d arrived with her circle of asha, and the snub added to my worry, unsure if I would be arrested and if she would be doing the arresting.

  Sadly, I wove another set of Compulsion, giving my patient a small measure of peace in his final moments, and tearfully closed his eyes after he had passed, mercifully, without pain. I gave quiet instructions for his body to be carried to Althy, and turned to Knox, who suffered from a broken arm.

  “We were careless,” Knox said hoarsely, watching the other Kion asha remove the body. “Didn’t have much experience with daeva beyond the nanghait, and to see that black poison spurting out of that creature was a nightmare.”

  “I’m sorry for your losses, milord.”

  “No sorrier than I am. We ought to eliminate these bloody-assed demons, Lady Tea. We can’t live in the same world as they. If one of us’s gotta go, I’d rather it be them.”

  “The daeva was being controlled by a Faceless. I doubt it would attack on its own.”

  “The fact that it can be controlled makes it a danger. Begging your pardon, milady,” he added, with a nervous glance at the azi flying overhead, who patrolled against any unexpected assaults. “I know you’re fond of t
hem. Or one of them.”

  “No offense taken, milord. I can understand the fear.”

  He’s right, I thought, setting his splint, I cannot keep resurrecting and killing daeva. Fighting the indar with the azi had already made me more exhausted than I remembered being in the past. But what could I do? Now that we’d learned that I cannot create shadowglass, bonding them to trustworthy Dark asha seemed the next best thing.

  Likh and Khalad spoke quietly, the former’s eyes red. “Why not?” I overheard her ask. “I’m as much in danger of dying here with the runic wards as without them.” The soldier she was ministering to had sustained a severe head wound but was not in any mortal danger.

  “You have a higher chance of dying without the wards as with them,” Khalad corrected. “We’ve had this discussion before, Likh. I’m not going to lose you on a maybe.”

  “What would you have done in my place? Would you be willing to stand by, knowing you could make a difference despite the risks?”

  “Not if I trust the people with me. Not if I ask them for protection as well. Your safety makes all the difference to the people you’re helping right now, Likh. You don’t need runes for that.”

  Likh looked at him, then down at the unconscious soldier. “I just wish I could do more.”

  I did a quick weave on her and saw the rune glow red. “This is ridiculous!” I exclaimed. “Likh, we’ve been eating the same foods, and none of us have exhibited any of the symptoms of Blight.”

  Likh didn’t look as distressed as I was; strangely enough, she grew calmer the more I spoke. “Maybe the blight affects silver heartsglass more than it does regular heartsglass. We’ve never been able to make a comparison, and I’ve been the only silver-hearted victim to survive this long. But that’s not as important anymore.”

  “But it is!” Khalad exploded. “Surely you can’t think that!”

  “I think that I should learn to accept that which is beyond my control and make the best of my situation. I’m not scared. This isn’t the time or the place to be scared. Too much is happening.” Likh smiled at him. “I’m not trying to deliberately put myself in danger. But if I’m already cursed, then the least I can do is to ensure none of you wind up the same way.”

  Without warning, Khalad yanked Likh to him and kissed her so thoroughly that I averted my eyes with some embarrassment. “I don’t care,” he snapped, breaking away, “I’ll protect you because I want to believe we have more years to spend together, and anything coming out of your mouth saying otherwise is a lie.”

  Likh’s eyes widened. Her face softened with adoration. I finished my work on Knox’s dressing and gently assisted the Yadoshan back to the main camp, allowing the two a private moment. Nowadays, those were rare.

  “Lady Likh and Lord Khalad?” Knox asked. “I had no idea. Isn’t Likh a…well…”

  “Lord Khalad finds no issue with that,” I told him. “And Lady Likh is Lady Likh. That’s all that matters.”

  “If you say so, Lady Tea. They’re both fine people.” Gingerly, Knox touched his sling. “Thank you for the aid. Though I fear this may render me useless should more battles break out.”

  The loss of their kinsmen had had a sobering effect on many of the Yadoshans, and they were more than eager to scale Mithra’s Wall and avenge their fallen comrades. I drew myself up, prepared to scold their recklessness, but a new voice broke into the conversation.

  “If all works out for the best, Lord Knox, then the next Drychta fight will be the last that both the Odalians and the Yadoshans shall concern themselves with. And the Kions, for that matter.”

  Gulping, I turned to face Althy. Zoya stood with her.

  “If you would give Lady Tea and I a moment, Lord Knox?”

  The man obliged. Awkwardly, I shuffled my feet. “I was surprised to see you here. I didn’t think Ankyo knew about the Drychta yet.”

  “The pigeons we sent to Yadosha never returned. It made Empress Alyx suspicious. So she sent out a small entourage of asha under my charge to investigate. That was a week and a half ago. If truth be told, I convinced her to send us here, just in case. By the time she and Fox sent us word of your warning, we were already a day’s ride from Mithra’s Wall.”

  I exhaled in relief. So Fox had heeded my call. “And I suppose you’re planning on bringing me back to Ankyo for my trial?”

  The asha snorted. “I don’t condone your decision to leave, Tea. But I am concerned with all the choices you have made since then. You were only to stay in Yadosha and lie low there until Mykkie and I could concoct a way for you to return. And now I find you here, among the Odalians and the Yadoshans, with a Faceless camped within reach.”

  “I couldn’t sit by and do nothing, Althy.” Quickly, I related everything that had happened since we had parted ways—the discovery of Blight runes in Thanh, my subsequent journey to meet with the Gorvekai, the trials within Stranger’s Peak. Althy’s brows were pinched together in concern by the time I was done.

  “It is troubling,” she said. “I think it was ill-advised of you to volunteer for the mountain’s tests. But I’m relieved that you have emerged unscathed. And here in Mithra’s Wall…you’re much stronger than before, Tea. Controlling a daeva normally takes concentration, yet you were able to handle two with ease, while fighting off a Faceless in one’s head besides.”

  “I’m almost jealous,” Zoya said. “Serves me right for staying behind. Stranger’s Peak would have been marvelous to see.”

  I shuddered. “I would have gladly traded places with you if I could, Zoya. It wasn’t a pleasant experience.”

  “I can prepare some more herbs for you, to help calm you,” Althy offered.

  “Kalen has been giving me the Calming spell nearly every day since we left Kion.”

  “The fool,” Zoya scoffed. “Surely he knows it saps his strength.”

  “I’ve tried. You know Kalen.”

  “I’ll make sure to yell at him for it later. And how is Likh?”

  I bit my lip. “She still has the blight, but I don’t know why. We’ve been so careful…”

  Althy mulled that over. “I’ll have a talk with Khalad and see what other options we have. Perhaps the Blight rune affects those with silver heartsglass differently.”

  “That is what she said. How…how is Fox?”

  Althy looked at me without saying a word.

  “I see.”

  “Tea, he’s as busy as you are, what with the princess and the—”

  “There is no need for an explanation, Althy. I understand all too well.”

  “He believed you about Druj,” Zoya persisted. “He’s still in shock. With the blighted courtiers, we didn’t have much time to—”

  I startled. “Blighted courtiers?”

  Althy shot Zoya a scathing look. “We’ve had our own share of blighted attacks. There is no reason to worry. The queen and princess are fine, as is Mykkie. Fox was instrumental in saving them.”

  “Lady Altaecia,” Kance greeted, nearing us with Kalen and General Lode by his side, “And, Lady Zoya. Thank you both for your assistance.”

  Zoya curtsied. “We nearly didn’t make it in time, Your Majesty, given the late start we were afforded. What do you intend to do now?”

  “We need to head to Mithra’s Wall and confront King Aadil,” Kance said abruptly. “I will not leave until I have that madman out of my kingdom, preferably in chains.”

  “And I would like to have a talk with the Faceless who stands behind him,” I added bleakly.

  “What if they raise another daeva?” General Lode asked. “I am leery of having to face another so soon.”

  “How many of the bezoars do we have now?” Kalen asked.

  “Five.” It had taken nearly two hours and a host of Fire runes to evaporate most of the poisonous bile the dead indar excreted in death before I was able to retrieve its sapphi
re-blue bezoar. “Including the azi, that makes six. There’s one more daeva not yet accounted for.”

  Zoya frowned. “That would be the akvan. But if I remember correctly, it won’t be ripe for resurrection for another two years.”

  “Unfortunately, the Faceless may have found a way to speed up the process. The Gorvekai claim such a rune exists but refuse to divulge the secret.”

  “Then Druj must have gleaned it through some other text,” Althy theorized. “And recently. We had no such problems with them in the past. He must have reason to believe the First Harvest is somewhere inside Mithra’s Wall.”

  “Then we must go after it immediately!” Zoya protested.

  “It’s not as easy as it sounds, Lady Zoya,” Kance said. “The close, cramped caves within the Wall will not be advantageous for large armies. The azi will not be able to enter short of burning down the whole mountain.”

  “Then let’s level it.” There was a nasty glint in Zoya’s eye.

  “As a last resort, yes. But I would much rather take less drastic means to lure the Drychta king out, milady.”

  “Why bother luring him out?” I interrupted. “I brushed against Druj’s mind for a few moments while the azi fought his indar. He’s smarter than Aenah, but not as feckless as Usij. I doubt you will get them out of the mountain for any reason until they find their prize, and time is running short. I understand that we might have the disadvantage going in, but with his soldiers depleted, that may be the best course of action.”

  “Mayhap it would be better for everyone if it did burn,” Althy murmured. “Let the First Harvest burn.”

  “I don’t think it would take to fire that easily,” Kalen said. “Lord Agnarr gave me the impression that it would endure whatever we did to destroy it.”

  “Then who do we send into Mithra’s?” Kance asked.