The Elder Blood Chronicles Book 3 From the Ashes

by Melissa Myers

  Symphony raised an eyebrow and looked to Shade who simply nodded in answer. “High moral standards?” she asked skeptically.

  Shade frowned at her and pursed his lips. “The part that Vaze didn’t tell you, then, to clarify for you. Jail Han’shy will use his Mind magic on anyone for anything that he wants. He has no qualms whatsoever on using it for a dark purpose – say to have someone kill someone else so that Jail himself has no blood on his hands. Valor Hai’dia is a drunken womanizer that I have personally witnessed kill someone for the offense of spilling wine on his tunic. Wisp Faydwer is a manipulator of the top degree. She will bat her eyelashes and blow you a kiss even as she is deciding where to plant the knife in your back. Neph doesn’t even require an offense such as spilled wine to kill you. All you have to do with that one is look at him the wrong way. So there is the other side of the coin,” Shade explained with a dark glance toward Vaze.

  “Is this true?” Symphony asked looking quickly back to Vaze.

  “A bit dramatic I think, but some of that may have occurred in the past,” Vaze admitted hesitantly.

  “Will they corrupt her then?” Symphony asked quickly, a worried expression forming on her face.

  “Ask the hundreds that she killed on the night we took the city. The Jala I met in Brannaford wouldn’t have done that,” Shade answered softly before Vaze could even open his mouth. The sound of voices from the hall rose and Shade silently stepped back farther into the shadows and activated his camouflage to hide.

  The worried expression vanished instantly from her face as the door opened and Lutheron stepped inside. Bowing, the second in command stepped aside, allowing the rest of the council to enter as well as a few people that Shade didn’t recognize.

  “Symphony, how was your flight?” Caspian asked in his customary quiet voice as he moved to sit beside her.

  “Wonderful. Thank you for asking. I think I’m finally learning how to properly control the hawk,” Symphony replied.

  The hawk and her instructor, Shade mused as he settled back against the wall, his eyes scanning every face in the room and the expressions they wore. He would mark every detail of the meeting from tone of voice to flicker of eye. It was best to have clear evidence of suspicion when dealing with Symphony. She was one of the rare individuals that put absolutely no value on rumors. For her there had to be proof.

  Chapter 15

  Merro

  A wave of dizziness washed over her as the translocation magic faded from them. Jala opened her eyes slowly and let out a sigh of relief as she recognized the bedroom they had left hours before.

  “Shit,” Valor muttered beside her. “Hello Neph,” he added in a weary voice.

  Turning, Jala spotted the Delvay mage sitting in a chair in the corner, his feet propped up on the edge of the bed and a stormy expression on his face. “Hello Neph,” she echoed Valor in a soft voice and raised her hand in a half-hearted wave.

  “What would you think if a friend of yours had just recovered from a near death illness and requested sleep and then when you went to check, you found your friend was gone?” Neph asked, his voice flat and his expression growing darker.

  “I would, uh… I would wonder where they were,” Jala answered in a halting voice and dropped down to sit on the bed facing Neph. All she wanted was to crawl under the covers and fall into a deep dreamless sleep, but that was apparently going to be a while.

  “My first thought was she lied to me rather than where is she,” Neph said his eyes locked on her accusingly. He folded his arms across his chest and looked from her to Valor. “My second thought was that Valor should have stopped her from leaving when she was obviously so weak. Instead the dumb ass went with her.”

  “I have no right to tell her what to do, Neph. I swore to follow her, not lead her,” Valor said flatly as he leaned back against the wall with an exasperated look on his face.

  “He tried to stop me, Neph, but I insisted,” Jala broke in before the argument between them could build. “I had to save Sebastian Blackwolf before Death regained strength. I had limited amounts of time to do it in and I knew you would object. I didn’t want to lie to any of you, but I didn’t want to fight with you either. It had to be done,” she explained in a level, calm voice as she pulled her boots off and lay back on her bed with a groan.

  “Had you considered possibly that had you told me that I might have understood?” Neph growled his temper apparently not soothed by her explanation in the least.

  “Have you considered that you swore to obey her and she has no reason to explain her actions to you whatsoever?” Valor shot back.

  “Have either of you considered that you act like rabid dogs when you are in the same room?” Jala asked with a sigh. “No, Neph I didn’t, and I should have. Valor, he has a right to question me because he is my friend, the same as you do. If I choose to listen or not is another matter entirely. “She rubbed her face and tried her best to force a smile. “ Neph, I love you, I truly do, and I appreciate all that you have done for me beyond what words are capable of expressing. But I’m begging you by all that is holy in this world, let me sleep now and yell at me when I wake up. I swear before you both on my Father’s grave that I will go nowhere until you have had your fill of cursing and snarling.”

  “Swear to me that you are actually going to sleep and I will consider it,” Neph snapped his eyes narrowed.

  “As deeply and soundly as I possibly can, considering the current situation. I’m too exhausted to do anything else,” Jala replied.

  “Fine, then. Before I go, though, let me leave you with something to think on,” Neph said as he stood. Reaching into his pocket he produced a pair of glasses set with colored lenses that reminded her of the ones Shade had worn in Sanctuary. “Sovann made these. He was eager to tell you about them but you seemed so weak he decided to wait until morning to bring it up. They allow the wearer to see Blights. He spent weeks working on it. Had we known you were going to Glis you could have taken these and allowed their mages to duplicate the runes on them,” Neph said quietly and set the glasses carefully down on her nightstand.

  Jala stared at the glasses, not even looking up to watch Neph leave the room. Carefully she reached over and picked them up to examine the runes closer. “I feel like such a fool now,” she whispered.

  “And that is exactly the reaction he wanted from you,” Valor replied quietly. “Neph likes to be right. Neph loves being in control, and above all else Neph adores being superior.”

  “He is right on this. Had I told them, I could have given these to Micah and helped them end the war with the Blights in a matter of weeks,” Jala said sadly as she set the glasses carefully back down on her table.

  “Then send them in the morning. Or form a mind link with Micah and show him the runes. They are not fighting the Blights tonight so a delay of one night will make no difference. Thank Sovann when you wake. Apologize to all of them and explain why you did it and forget about Neph’s bitching. Neph will always have something to bitch about. He is Delvay,” Valor said as he stood straight once more and headed for the door.

  “Goodnight, Jala,” he called over his shoulder.

  “Goodnight, Val,” Jala replied softly and watched him leave. She patted the bed beside her and Marrow jumped up and lay down with a yawn. “It seems like no matter what I do, I do it wrong,” she sighed and scratched the Bendazzi behind the ears.

  You are doing it wrong. Scratch more to the left, Marrow told her with a faint chuckle.

  “You are not helping,” Jala sighed.

  I wasn’t trying to help. I was trying to mock you. If you must kick and berate yourself, do it in the morning. I’m tired tonight, Marrow informed her and punctuated his words with yawning in her face before dropping his head down flat to stare at her.

  “What could you possibly be tired from? I did all the work tonight,” Jala grumbled as she shimmied under the blankets and pulled them up to her chin.

  Hmph. Healing. All that required was your si
tting on your ass. I, in the meantime, tormented the large ugly bear. Marked the territory of most of the town just to annoy the Shifters. They have very sensitive noses, you know, and well, Bendazzi musk is potent. That, and I kept watch on the knights from time to time. Oh, and I ate a few small animals I found around the village. With luck they weren’t actually Shifters. Just in case they were, however you might want to hint that you believe Blights might have been in the area. Marrow’s voice was soothing in her mind and she felt herself relaxing until he reached the last of his recitation of his night’s amusement.

  “Wait,” Jala began as she propped herself up on her elbow and locked gazes with him. “While I was sowing good will between our nations you terrorized their guard, pissed on their town, and possibly ate some of their citizens?” she demanded.

  When you say it that way, is sounds horrible. If they comment on the guard, say I’m curious. If they comment on the marking, tell them the Blights fear Bendazzi and I was helping them. If they mention missing relatives, gasp and say, “How awful.” How hard is that? Marrow said in a clear logical voice and shook his massive head at her before laying it down once more. Really you are over reacting.

  Dropping back to lie flat on her back, Jala stared up at the ceiling and let out a long breath. “I probably am,” she agreed. Turning her head to look at him once more she frowned. “Unless you ate Sebastian’s Aunt or childhood friend,” she added dryly.

  He is a Shifter. He should understand the nature of survival of the fittest. I was fitter and now I’m fatter. Blessed are small furry creatures that are slower than me and tasty, Marrow sighed in contentment and rolled onto his back.

  “Glutton,” Jala sighed as she turned her head back to stare up at the ceiling. She gave another sigh and lifted her arm to stare at the tattoos that still lined her wrist and arm. Tracing a finger lightly down the gold lines she swallowed heavily. “I miss him so much Marrow,” she whispered and felt the first of the unshed tears gathering in her eyes. “I told myself not to grieve, that I would have him back. I told myself that everything we faced in the Darklands would be worth it, because I would have him back, and now I’ve failed and I don’t get another try. I wanted him back so badly that with my impatience I threw away my one chance to get him. How can I live with that knowledge without the guilt driving me mad?” The tears were coursing fully down her cheeks now and she sniffled as she wiped them away. Rolling over onto her side she buried her face in Marrow’s thick fur shoulders, shaking with the grief she had been holding back for so long.

  Death is part of the cycle, Jala. When something dies it isn’t meant to come back. Why can’t you Immortals accept that? You live longer than anything else in existence and yet it still isn’t enough for your kind. You don’t age. You don’t know illness. Life is filled with more bounty for your people than any other creature and yet it is never enough. Death is natural and must be accepted. This is a wound like any other, Jala. It will heal and you will not go mad. There is no guilt in this for you. You did more than any other would have done to bring him back and you didn’t fail. Death cheated. Marrow’s voice was gentle but firm in her mind.

  “I’d rather suffer a thousand bodily wounds than one more like this one,” Jala whispered into his coat.

  Wipe your nose on me and I’ll start on those thousand wounds for you, Marrow warned her.

  Half laughing, half sobbing, Jala rolled away and onto her back once more. “I almost tried to use the family magic to hold onto him,” Jala confessed in a hoarse whisper. Holding her hand up between them she pinched her fingers together to show only the barest stretch of light between them. “I came this close.” She dropped her hand back to the blankets and bit back another sob. “It was the memory of that black cloud of destruction washing over my home that stopped me. If that is the price of wishes, I will earn everything the hard way. I don’t see the value of a gift that has such a harsh price.”

  Perhaps it is all in what you wish for that determines the price, Jala. They wished for suffering and pestilence. I wonder what would happen if you wished for peace and good fortune? Marrow countered softly.

  “The Elder Blood would all die and it would be peaceful and the few creatures that survived would consider it good fortune,” Jala replied dryly.

  You need sleep, Jala. You are exhausted and heart sick and it is darkening your thoughts. Let me give you something to think on and perhaps you can find enough peace in my words to sleep, Marrow said softly and raised his head to look at her. Finn Sovaesh lived a self-professed life of personal indulgence. He was a killer, a womanizer, and utterly selfish by his own words. In just a few months of knowing you, he died a hero’s death to save thousands of people from tyranny. Had he not brought the barrier down on that city, Morcaillo would have won this war. That city holds too much leverage to your kind. If you can change a man like that so dramatically in such a short time, what can you do in a lifetime for a country of people who aren’t nearly so dark? He died a good death doing a wonderful thing, Jala, and he did it so you would have a chance to do for Merro what you did for him. Finn gave you the opportunity for your dream. If you are smothered by grief and clouded by guilt, then you are going to waste the opportunity that Finn sacrificed himself to give you. Would you throw that away?

  Jala turned her head and stared at Marrow as he laid his head back down once more. The tightness in her throat eased a bit and she felt the rush of tears slowing. “Right now, I’m more worried about someone taking it away, than I am throwing it away myself. We are so weak and we have so many enemies,” she whispered.

  Never pick a fight with a Dazzi. On some things the Arovan are wise. Now sleep, Jala. We have a lot of work ahead of us before spring and it starts tomorrow, Marrow said softly, his eyes already closed and his breathing slowing as he began to drift off.

  With a frustrated groan, Jala tossed another dress into the rapidly growing pile of clothes near her feet. Wrapping her robe back around her tightly she stared into the mirror, her eyes locked on her huge midsection. She had thought at first that her spell urging her son’s growth had failed. Its success however was marked clearly in the size of her stomach as well as the size of the pile of clothes beside her. No matter what style she chose, she couldn’t seem to fashion a dress that suited her current frame. The last had made her look like a grape with its color and shape.

  Her eyes traveled up the mirror slowly to her face and she let out another sigh. She didn’t have the will to bother with fixing her hair today. So it was tied back in a clumsy knot with curls protruding at odd intervals. Her violet eyes were so bloodshot there didn’t seem to be any white to them, and the dark circles under her eyes looked more like bruises than marks of sleeplessness.

  “I look twenty years older than I am,” Jala said softly as she smoothed a wine colored curl back from her forehead.

  You look like the village nutter with your hair like that and the wool robe, Marrow observed helpfully from his perch on the foot of the bed.

  “The village nutter,” Jala repeated with a slight nod. “I bet that is a stress-free life.” Turning, she moved away from the mirror and the pile of clothes and sat down by the window. It had been three days since her trip to Glis and beyond a mind link with Micah informing him of the runes she had done nothing other than sit at the window or sleep. Marrow had said their work would begin days ago, and yet she still didn’t have the will to face it. She knew she should go downstairs and at least attempt to help her friends, but so far she hadn’t successfully made it past dressing.

  Leaning back in her seat she rested a hand on the top of her stomach and stared down at the street below. Everywhere she looked, the city thrummed with life. Workers bustling by on errands. Knights at their drills. Children playing in the street. Despite the chilly damp weather outside, Merro continued on without pause. “And I can’t even find the energy to dress,” Jala sighed.

  “Neph is making threats,” Emily informed her as she pushed through the door. “He didn’t
notice me downstairs, though, and I found food. Actual meat this time. I don’t know where it came from, but we got some of it.”

  There was a sound of dishes clattering down on the table and then a lengthy pause in Emily’s flood of words. Jala shifted in her chair and continued to watch the scene below. Food didn’t hold much appeal to her at the moment. In truth, nothing really held much appeal. If not for Emily’s constant presence over the past few days she doubted she would have bothered with eating.

  “I thought you were going to get dressed while I got food?” Emily spoke quietly, her voice edged with concern.

  “Nothing fits right and they seem to be doing just fine without me,” Jala replied without bothering to turn. There was no real point to turning anyway. Emily would be camouflaged. She always was.

  “Neph is saying if you don’t come down today he is going to drag you down. Jail is arguing that you need time to settle your grief. Valor is saying if Neph heads toward the stairs he is going to cut his legs off. And Wisp just makes these sad little whining noises. They do need you, Jala,” Emily protested.

  “I think Neph dragging me is the only way I’ll get downstairs. I can’t even see my feet right now, Emily. How am I supposed to navigate stairs?” Jala sighed, her hand moving slowly down the firm roundness of her stomach. “I don’t think it will be much longer. My magic was far more effective than I thought it would be.”

  “I haven’t told them about how big you are now,” Emily said as she placed a plate of food meaningfully on the table beside the window for Jala.

  “How big I am now,” Jala repeated with another sigh. Glancing down she examined the food, her eyes lingering on the thick cut of roast. For the past two days it had been nothing but porridge and now suddenly they had meat. Jala frowned as she tried to guess where her friends might have purchased beef, but gave up after a few breaths of thought. It didn’t truly matter where they had found it. The people in the town below wouldn’t question where it had come from.