She stared him up and down for several moments, then finally met his eye and offered him a half-smile.
“This wasn’t my idea,” she informed him. “But I’ll admit that it isn’t exactly a bad one.”
“Whose idea was it?” Andrew asked.
“Tyrus.” The way she said the name sounded like a whole explanation. “He heard that you were new to the whole swordplay business, and thus insists that you keep up your practice despite your injuries. I was going to give you a few days off, but considering that you had two weeks in Amber’s prison, this is a good idea. Be glad I insisted that I take charge of it. I mean, Lord Abraham offered, but I much preferred to take care of it myself.”
“Um, yeah,” said Andrew, not sure what else to say.
She continued to scan him up and down for a moment, then met his eye again. “I’m not going to have you do any actual fighting since I’m not sure I can hold myself back.” The grin she flashed at that comment was almost flirtatious. “Instead, I’m mostly going to run you through forms and see what your limits are. If I ask you to do something that hurts too much, tell me. Don’t push yourself. We don’t need you to injure yourself further.”
“Uh, yes,” said Andrew. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
“However,” she continued. “I do expect you to give everything you do have. Now, to the forms. They’re for your sword, by the way. I may favor the thinner blade, but my mother has taught me how to use any sword that I might ever need to pick up.”
And with that, she drew her sword and struck a pose, the sword held over her head, the tip pointing down.
“Um, doesn’t that leave my whole body exposed?” Andrew pointed out, thinking back to his first lesson with Abraham. Clara had never run him through forms before, her method being mostly showing him basic fighting maneuvers and making him use them against her.
“I’m testing the limits of your strength,” Clara pointed out. “Besides, done right, this is a good position for an uppercut, especially as tall as you are. I’ll show you later.”
There was nothing for it. She was his teacher and her mind was set. He drew his sword, and mimicked her position, though his back stung. He was only able to hold it a few seconds before the sword dropped back to his side.
The Water Princess’s eye was critical as she stared at his sword, and then she glanced up and met his eye, offering a weak smile. “Well, at least you’re alive.”
Chapter 5
It seemed that every time Clara turned around, she was informed of a new plot to sway the war to their favor, a new secret weapon that the Lady Dragon would never suspect. Like the day she came upon Jill Anna hunting bugs, but instead of killing them, putting them in wire cages.
“What are you doing?” she asked, after watching her for a while.
Jill Anna glanced up from her cage. “Oh, Water Princess, I didn’t see you there.”
“I specialize in being silent,” said Clara. “I’m wonderful at capture the flag.”
“Capture the … pardon?”
Clara waved it off. “It’s a game in our world. It’s like war, but not so dangerous. I’d like to know what you’re up to. If I remember right, and I don’t think that turning into an ice statue is supposed to affect one’s memories, you’re supposed to be killing those things, not caging them.”
“Oh,” said Jill Anna, glancing back down at her cage. “You do remember correctly. However, Sarai and Phillip intend to use them in the war, turn Amber’s weapon against her, so to speak. We’ve been capturing the Ia Beetles instead of killing them. Many of the soldiers were Bug Children in their youth. They will carry these cages into battle and set them against the Dragon’s army.”
“Do you think it’ll work?” Clara asked. “I mean, not to be a naysayer or anything like that, but are you sure it’ll work? If they’re the doing of Amber’s magic, then her army might be immune.”
“Perhaps so, but it is still worth trying,” said Jill Anna.
“And how are you going to keep them from biting our army?”
“Thick boots.”
“Well, you’re the Bugslayer, not I, so I suppose you know best,” said Clara. “Third in command, wasn’t it? You haven’t been demoted since I was an ice statue, have you?”
Jill Anna shook her head. “No, I haven’t, Water Princess. Still third, strange though it is to believe. Oh, not so close, Water Princess,” for Clara had been examining the cages, “captivity has not put them in a good mood. I’ve already had three bite me.”
“And how about Jakob?” Clara continued, straightening. “Has the Lor’Son asked you to dance in the last few weeks?”
A blush spread across Jill Anna’s face as she fidgeted with the handle of the cage. “There hasn’t been a ball since the night you and the Fire Prince were kidnapped.”
“Oh, you know what I mean,” said Clara. “Has he been showing you marked attention?”
The blush deepened and Jill Anna refused to meet Clara’s eye. “He really shouldn’t pay heed to such a one as me. I’m just a Bug Child. I—”
“You are third in command over the Bugslayers,” Clara pointed out. “That’s rank enough, to my knowledge.”
“Yes.” Jill Anna was quiet. “But he is the Lor’Son, and will one day be Lord over Upper Klarand. If – if he were a lesser man, I could accept him, but he isn’t. Upper Klarand demands an heir, and I … I cannot give him one.”
“Jill Anna…” Clara breathed.
Jill Anna shook her head. “I thought my position could give me hope, and he himself … but Phillip and Sarai, they’re married, have been for years, but they have no children.”
“That doesn’t mean that you can’t have them,” Clara pointed out. “There are many reasons for a woman to be barren. My mother…”
Jill Anna was shaking her head again. “No Bugslayer, man or woman, whether they married a fellow Bugslayer or not, has had children,” she countered. “And many have married. It’s the poison that runs through our veins and makes us immune. It prevents us.”
“Oh, Jill Anna, I – I don’t know what to say,” said Clara, stepping forward and putting a hand on her friend’s shoulder. “My mother, well, she was lucky to have me. I know it’s a painful thing, but for it to prevent you from marrying the man you love?”
“And what’s worse, now I know that he cares,” Jill Anna continued. “He has for years, ever since he first saw me … the last day I was a Bug Child. I haven’t told him yet about this … I haven’t seen him since Sarai told me.”
“There must be some way,” Clara whispered. “Surely Alphego could work a miracle in your favor.”
Jill Anna’s answer was scarcely more than a whisper, but it carried raw pain. “I’ve prayed for years, Water Princess, years, hoping against hope that I might someday be of proper rank to be considered by him. But to have it dangled before me, then ripped away and torn to shreds in a moment? I can’t. I can’t do it anymore, Water Princess.” She balled her hands into fists as she shook her head.
“Then I will pray for you,” Clara declared. “You’re my friend, one of the first I had here, and your sister is dear to me. I want you to be happy, Jill Anna.”
“I have to tell him, next time I see him … but I can’t stand to disappoint him,” Jill Anna continued, fidgeting. “He’s been through so much, I really don’t want to do it to him. I mean, having one’s sister frozen can’t be easy on a person…”
“It’s not.”
Both girls spun around to see Jakob standing a bit further down the hall, hands behind his back.
“Oh, hello, Jakob,” said Clara, glancing at Jill Anna. “How long have you been standing there?”
“Long enough to realize that you’re talking about me and my sister,” said Jakob. “I’ll leave you to the first one, girl’s gossip and all that, but was actually looking for the Water Princess to discuss the second.”
“Okay, shoot,” said Clara. “What would you like to know about your sister? Or tell me, sin
ce I honestly doubt that I know something about your sister that you don’t.”
“It is mostly telling,” said Jakob, smiling. “Though it’s also a request, I suppose. I would have preferred to have the Fire Prince here as well, but you should be sufficient.”
“He’s with the Wind Prince, King Tyrus, and King Stephan inspecting the troops, I believe,” said Clara. “Let’s hear it. If it’s something that requires his approval, I’ll ask him the next time I have a chance, which should be in about an hour when he has his sword practice.”
“Very well,” said Jakob. “You see, we just received a report about her from soldiers who had come from the village she’d been taking her supplies to. You know how I told you that Amber’s ice statues melt with the coming of spring?”
“Yes,” said the Water Princess. “That’s the only reason that I haven’t suggested that we take the Fire Prince to go unfreeze her, since we now know that he can do it.” She rubbed her arm and shuddered, trying to shake off the memory of being frozen herself.
“Her entire entourage has melted,” Jakob continued, his voice rising a pitch with excitement. “But she didn’t. She’s still standing. She’s still there!”
Clara just stood there a moment as she processed what he’d said. “Really?” she breathed.
“Yes,” he said. “Father didn’t believe we should bring it up, not until after the war, at least, since we’re so busy, but I—”
“No, no, we must go free her at once, the poor thing,” Clara decided. “I’ll talk to the Fire Prince, to be sure, and Kath and Rich, too, since they seem to be the ones running things. This is war, but she has a sword and is obviously not afraid to use it. We need every swordsman or woman we can get, after all.”
“Quite true,” said Jakob.
“Don’t worry about a thing, I’ll arrange it all,” Clara glanced between the two, took a deep breath, then added, “Would you like me to give you two a moment?”
“I—” Jill Anna began, but Jakob shook his head.
“As much as I would love a moment to speak with her, I have things I must do,” said Jakob, with a shake of his head. “I barely got away long enough that I might ask this request of you, Water Princess.”
As he turned to leave, however, Jill Anna dashed forward and grabbed his sleeve, a cry of “Jakob,” catching in her throat.
“Yes, Jill Anna? Is something wrong?” His brows pulled down in concern.
She fell back, glancing away. “Oh, it’s nothing, actually. I’m just glad that you can be reunited with your sister.”
He stared at Jill Anna a moment, concern written all over his face. He glanced over her shoulder to the Water Princess. He seemed about to speak, but then mumbled a quick “Thank you,” and continued on his way.
Jill Anna turned back to Clara, her shoulders sagging. “I can’t do it,” she said, shaking her head. “I just can’t tell him.”
“He needs to know,” Clara pointed out. “You can’t just leave him hanging, avoiding him without explanation. But, if it’ll make you feel any better, I could tell him for you, if he asks me.”
Jill Anna glanced up and met Clara’s eye. “Would you?”
“Look, he’s already realized you’re upset about something. He’s a remarkably perceptive guy,” Clara explained. “He knows you’re my friend and that I was just talking to you. He may ask me questions, he might not. But if he does, with your permission, I will tell him about the Bugslayer mess.”
Jill Anna nodded. “Thank you, Water Princess. But … I suppose if he asks me first, I’ll still have to answer.”
“It’s your duty,” Clara confirmed. “As is hunting down those bugs and apparently caging them. Mine is to make sure the Dragon gets out of Klarand, and then rule the island with the Fire Prince. No getting out of it.” She sighed heavily.
Upper Klarand was certainly more mountainous than Lower Klarand. Andrew couldn’t tell much more about it, though, since they were going so fast. A couple of Rowandas – another of Rizkaland’s steeds and the fastest creatures in this world – had volunteered to take them to the valley where Li’Daughter Essua had been turned to ice.
Andrew zoned out and focused on staying on Crimson’s back. It was easier said than done, with as fast as the Rowanda went.
At last, however, they arrived at the valley, and the Rowandas came to a stop. Andrew slipped down from Crimson’s back and glanced about. “Well,” he said. “Here we are. Where is she?”
“Just over there,” said Jakob, pointing. He looked pretty excited.
“Come on, I can’t wait to actually meet her,” the Water Princess announced, looking very excited as well as she tugged at Andrew’s sleeve.
Essua stood at the other end of the field, clear, cold ice, a sword held over her head as she glared at an invisible foe.
“So, how are we going to go about unfreezing her?” the Water Princess spoke up, as the approached her. “I mean, she looks like she’s in a pretty feisty mood, so…”
“Yeah, knowing her, it’ll probably take a few moments before she realizes that the Dragon is gone,” Jakob agreed. “We’ll need to disarm her as quickly as possible, though I don’t think that, even after two years, I have the skill to do so.”
“Consider it done,” said the Water Princess, drawing her sword. “Although, when you unfroze me…”
“You are the Water Princess,” Andrew spoke up before she could finish that train of thought. “I think that did change a few things: made it harder for you to freeze and unfreeze. Water is strange like that. It takes a lot of energy to switch between forms.”
“Pardon?” said Jakob.
“He’s talking science,” said the Water Princess. “Just nod and pretend you understand.”
Andrew decided that it would probably be safest to stand behind Essua, out of her line of sight, to unfreeze her. Jakob stood to the side, out of the way, and the Water Princess stood before her, sword held at the ready. Andrew held up his hand, positioned his ring over her head, and poured out just enough fire to cover her for a few seconds.
As it faded away, color bled back into her, a brown braid, green dress and leggings in the same style that the Water Princess frequently wore, and the same ruddy complexion as her brother. The swords met, and several blows were exchanged before the girl seemed to realize that something was very wrong, and her swings slowed. The Water Princess took that opportunity to knock the sword out of her hand.
The next moment Jakob had folded his sister into his arms. She pushed him back to arm’s length and stared at him in confusion for several seconds. “Jakob? What are you doing here? Wh-what happened to that dragon’s army? Where are my men? What happened?”
Jakob seemed reluctant to answer. “How much do you remember?”
Essua’s brow knit as she considered. “Well, the delivery was a success and the village was most grateful for the supplies, but then Amber attacked us on the way back, and with a number of her minions. It was a desperate fight, but the next moment, the girl I’m fighting with is most certainly not that Dragon, and you’re here, Jakob.”
“Amber turned you to ice,” Jakob informed her.
“Ice?” Essua’s voice was thin, but then it settled down into a growl in her throat. “Of all the terrible things she could do. Oh, I do wish the Water Princess and Fire Prince would hurry themselves here and get – wait, only the Fire Prince could have freed me.” She spun around until her eyes fell on Andrew. “You’re him, aren’t you? Oh, you look like a Fire Prince, and there’s no mistaking it.”
“Yeah, he does, doesn’t he?” the Water Princess spoke up. “It’s the sword.”
Essua spun again. “And the Water Princess too.”
“Yeah, we were kind of a package deal,” said the Water Princess, holding out a hand. “Li’Daughter Essua, wasn’t it? Your brother has told me so much about you. Now, come along, we brought a picnic. After two years as a human ice cube, I’m sure you’re hungry. I mean, I know I was
after two weeks.”
“Two years?” Essua repeated, glancing up at her brother. “I’ve been frozen for two years? No wonder you’re taller.”
“Uh, yeah,” said Jakob. “But it’s a shorter wait than many have had. It’s summer now, so it’ll be several months before the Fire Prince can see to the rest of the statues.”
“It’s summer?” Essua asked. “Then how was I freed?”
“You didn’t melt this year,” Jakob explained. “We aren’t sure why, but you didn’t.”
“I actually have something of a theory,” the Water Princess spoke up. “Last winter, Jakob brought me here to visit you, and for some reason, I decided to touch you. I didn’t have my ring yet, but maybe I still did something. We have food, did I mention?”
Essua turned to Clara. “Yes, you mentioned.” She took a deep breath. “Well, then, I guess I’ll just have to thank Alphego for the miracle and be done with it.”
“A marvelous plan,” said Jakob.
They returned to the rowandas and produced the picnic. Essua seemed lost in thought, which was understandable, considering that she’d just lost two years of her life. Conversation was carried mostly by Jakob and the Water Princess, as they discussed the doings of Upper Klarand over the last two years, how she and Andrew had finally come to Klarand, and the events of the last few weeks.
“So, you still have to get rid of the Dragon,” Essua commented, at length.
“Yep,” said the Water Princess. “And we’re going to need every able sword we can get to get rid of her.”
“I have an able sword,” said Essua, tilting her head to the side.
“I know it, and I quite approve of it,” said the Water Princess. “It’s half the reason we came here to get you today, rather than waiting until we were done with the Dragon. Otherwise, well, things are quite busy back at the Kastle.”
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