The Wind's Call

by T. A. White

  Laurell leaned over, offering her hand for the small creature to sniff. "He's cute."

  Hanna stared at him. "His coat would make a good fur-lined cloak or a blanket."

  The fox bared his teeth and snapped them at Hanna, who reared back out of reach.

  Those teeth were sharp and lethal.

  "You didn't tell us she was a Caller," Caden said to Ajari as the mythological stepped closer, his gaze on the fox, fascination on his face.

  At Caden's words, he glanced over in curiosity. "Oh? Your people remember the Callers?"

  "Our oral stories stretch back many generations," Caden said. "We've preserved pieces of our Before history."

  "Still, I'm surprised you would know of such a being. They didn't often wage war," Ajari said in a silky tone.

  Caden inclined his head. "I try to make note of all that could be useful. Our elders spoke, I listened."

  "What is a Caller?" Eva asked. The word was familiar. Ajari had used that term a couple of times before, but she hadn’t realized it carried any significance.

  "Exactly as it sounds," Ajari said, moving toward Eva, his gaze locked on the fox who calmly surveyed him. "Someone who can call all manner of sorts to them. It's said they can communicate easily with any creature, no matter their language or species. Mythologicals, beasts, animals. It doesn’t matter; all are in their range."

  Eva was quiet, thinking over her past. She’d always shared a special bond with most animals. It was one of the reasons she suspected why she’d been chosen to be the sacrifice.

  Her mind raced with the implications. She'd started to hear the mythologicals' thoughts. She'd heard those water sprites before they tried to drag her under.

  There were also the stories her mother used to tell when Eva’s father was fast asleep and it was just her and Eva. Stories about their ancestors who could do all sorts of magical and wondrous things. Stories she'd consigned to myth as she grew older and her mother withdrew into her own tiny little world.

  “It’s magic?” she asked.

  Ajari shrugged. “If that’s the term you prefer. However, it’s more like an ability only a very few have. Simply by existing, you’ll draw those of the four-legged variety to you. You won’t be able to help it; it’s in your nature. They’ll be attracted to you much like a bee is to a flower. The more powerful a caller, the more they can make their voices heard. They communicate with the voiceless, sometimes standing as a bridge between us and humans. You’re likely descended from one of their lines on your mother or father’s side. Any family stories about men or women with strange abilities?”

  Eva glanced away. Yes, there had been stories, but not about people related to her. Cammi and her agreement with the hags—the bedtime story her mother used to tell her. Maybe it was more. Maybe Cammi was real and had used this caller ability to broker safety for her people.

  “Our legends say they could call up armies of mythologicals, control them,” Caden said with an indecipherable expression.

  “Legends. Myths. The callers could never control us. Don’t think they’re another form of the beast call who can be used to compel our obedience,” Ajari said coolly.

  Maybe not, but if a caller could speak to mythologicals, even those who were voiceless, they could make alliances, become friends. Perhaps even ask those friends to wage war on their behalf when humans wronged them.

  Ajari’s attention shifted to Eva, a slyness there. "It seems Sebastian chose truer than even I knew when he picked you. Have you heard him yet? By now, the bond should be deep enough for him to project his thoughts."

  “I’m not sure,” she found herself saying, not wanting to reveal to him she had begun to hear the mythologicals’ voices.

  From his reaction to Caden’s suggestion that a caller would be able to control mythologicals, she sensed it would be dangerous to be seen as someone with that ability. She needed to think about all the ramifications being this caller would mean, before she let herself confirm it.

  "Perhaps you simply need more time for your mind to develop the ability,” Ajari said with a watchful gaze. He nodded at the fox in her arms. “Fire foxes rarely choose a human companion. I haven't seen one in more years than I can remember. I thought they had died out when the rest of us were imprisoned. They stick close to those with power. We once considered them a sign of luck—good or bad–depended on a person’s perception. It'll be interesting to see what he brings out of you."

  Eva looked from the little creature to Ajari. She knew better than most that appearances could be deceiving, but it still surprised her to hear the creature's reputation.

  "You're not like that, are you?" she whispered to him as he peered up at her. The fox let out another yip before swiping its tongue across her chin and leaping onto Caia's neck.

  The horse stood placidly under the fox, unperturbed at its presence.

  "What manner of creature could do all this?" Laurell muttered, looking about the camp.

  "A dangerous one," Fiona said, looking entirely too interested.

  Darius ignored the banter, focusing on Caden. "I hope your excursion brought us something useful."

  "I think you'll be interested in what I learned," Caden said.

  He stood, raising his hands to his mouth and letting out a piercing whistle. The piebald pounded into view, stopping in front of Caden with a showy flourish.

  “Do tell,” Darius murmured.

  “For starters, I know the name of our enemy. He goes by Pierce.” Caden mounted and guided the horse to them. “His followers treat him like a god. He’s said to have strange abilities.”

  “A myein then,” Darius said grimly.

  “What’s that?” Eva asked.

  “It’s what they call people like you,” Reece said. “Someone who is ‘more’, who has abilities others do not. At least that’s how my cousin explained it.”

  Darius regard the pathfinder with a challenging smile. “Some might say pathfinders could be considered myein.”

  “Hardly,” Reece scoffed.

  “You don’t think so?” Darius raised an eyebrow. “How else would you describe a group who can navigate the treacherous depths of the mist and never get lost? A group possessing talents that most do not.”

  Reece compressed his lips, looking thoughtful.

  “The myein are rare among my people,” Caden told Eva. “But they are usually welcome, their gifts embraced.”

  “Usually,” Darius qualified.

  Eva shot Caden a grateful smile at his effort to reassure her, knowing he’d guessed her discomfort at having one more thing marking her as different from the Trateri.

  He dipped his chin in silent acknowledgement before guiding the horse over to them. "The problem is bigger than we originally thought. Rebellion has taken root in several of the towns and it seems there is a new player on the board looking to take advantage of the innate abilities of certain mythologicals. This Pierce seems to be quite compelling. I can’t tell if he is the leader or whether he is simply one head among others. The men I talked to said he could charm you into doing anything—even at great harm to yourself."

  Eva petted the fox, scratching his chin when he offered it to her as she considered the information shared.

  "Numbers?" Darius asked, not seeming surprised at Caden’s news.

  Eva's hand stilled on the fox's head. They knew about the rebellion—or at least suspected. None of the warriors who had accompanied them looked shocked.

  Fiona caught Eva’s eye and winked, holding one finger to her lips in an unvoiced order not to question.

  This was the true reason Fallon had sent Darius and these warriors with Eva, not to protect her, but to weed out a problem before it could truly take root.

  Oh, Eva had no doubt they were tasked with keeping her alive until they reached the herd lands—Caden's actions were proof of that—but it wasn’t the only reason they had accompanied her. Otherwise, why not just put her on the back of the Kyren and send her on her way.

  Mac
hinations, wrapped in machinations. It seemed to be the Trateri way.

  Caden shook his head. "Unknown. More than we suspected is my guess."

  Darius sighed. "I should have let Braden take this one."

  Caden's smile flashed. "We both know you'd never have let that happen."

  "Damn my ego to the darkness and abyss."

  Even Eva knew Darius didn't truly mean that.

  Caden took a look around. "There are less of you than I expected."

  "The rest are back at the main campsite, protecting the injured," Darius responded as he guided his horse back the way they'd come.

  He didn't dispatch his people to look for survivors. Caden wasn't the type to make stupid mistakes. There would be no survivors. Anyone who had made it in one piece, had most likely beaten a hasty retreat and were long gone.

  "Bad?" Caden asked.

  Darius grunted, some of his normal good humor fading. Tiredness dragged at the corners of his mouth as his thoughts shifted to those he'd lost and others who hadn't come away from the encounter unscathed.

  "We'll survive, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to send for reinforcements, especially if we're going up against what sounds like an army." Darius shook his head. "Unfortunately, it'd likely be a death sentence for anyone I sent back."

  Caden grunted in agreement. "Especially since these were likely not the only ones following us. I suspect they have mythologicals in their pocket who can do a much better job of keeping an eye on us than any human."

  Disgruntlement filled Darius's expression. "I miss the days when all we had to worry about were human enemies who might stab us in the back."

  There were silent nods from those around Eva.

  "We'll do what we can with what we have," Caden said.

  "As always," Darius responded.

  It was the last of their discussion as the pace increased. After that, talk became too difficult as they made their way back to the camp where they'd left Darius's wounded and a small security detachment.

  Caden fell back to ride by Eva halfway through the journey.

  She watched him out of the corner of her eye as the rest fanned out around them, keeping a lookout for stray beasts or new enemies.

  "You kept your promise," Caden observed without looking at her.

  Eva pulled a face. "Sorry we weren't there sooner. I tried to convince him, but he said it was too dangerous to travel."

  "I'm not surprised. I suspected that would be his response. It worked out in the end. I did what needed doing," he said.

  His expression was somber as he stared straight ahead.

  "You sent me away so you could attack head on," she guessed.

  At that, he looked over at her, his eyes glacial and hard. "You would have been a liability if you'd stayed."

  His answer had her teeth clicking together since she couldn’t really argue with that assessment. She wasn't skilled with blade or in the art of sneaking around.

  "Did you send me away because I was a liability or because you were worried about what I'd think of you afterward?" she asked, seeing past the hard front he presented.

  The muscles around his jaw clenched. "No, it was because you were a liability."

  Liar. She didn't know what led her to that conclusion, but she knew it with the same certainty as she knew her own name.

  There were a dozen different ways he could have used her presence, or more importantly, Sebastian’s, that didn't involve sending them from the battlefield. The only thing she wasn't sure about was whether he'd done it because she was his charge or if he had deeper feelings.

  "Uh-huh," she said.

  The sight of Jane trying to cover a smile made her think she was on the right track.

  She let the matter drop. Pressing wasn't likely to uncover anything further. Caden struck her as being stubborn like that.

  "I'm glad you managed to survive. It would have been hard to explain if you hadn't."

  He slid her a glance like he knew exactly how desperate she had been to keep him from dying. "We wouldn't have wanted to disappoint you now."

  "Finally, you speak sense." Eva touched her heels to Caia's side, spurring her forward. The wind hid her self-satisfied grin at getting in the last word. It was surprisingly fun verbally fencing with Caden, even if sometimes at the end she felt like she'd gotten away with sticking her hand into a hornet’s nest.

  The sentries let out a low call at the sight of them as they rode past, notifying the others of their return.

  Attention locked on Caden and Darius, leaving Eva free to dismount in relative peace. To the Trateri, Caden was almost as important as the general.

  Eva couldn't help but be aware as the warriors slapped Caden's back, welcoming him home. She kept her motions quick, wanting to check on Ollie at the first opportunity.

  A Trateri man broke off from those surrounding Caden. "Guess you're not the traitor we assumed after all."

  The way he said it made it seem like he was disappointed or still disbelieving.

  Eva blinked at him, unable to form a response.

  Caden appeared behind him, his face a mask of terrible fury as he grabbed the man by the neck and yanked him around in an implacable hold. "What did you just say?"

  "Caden, enough," Eva shouted.

  Caden's gaze flicked toward her and then back to the man he held in his grip. "I asked you a question."

  The man's face had gone pale, even as confusion clouded his expression. "What? I don't understand."

  "To her. What did you just say to her?" Caden's growl was a thing of nightmares, more suited to a beast than a man's throat.

  "I told you it's not important," Eva barked.

  Caden ignored her, entirely focused on the prey in his grip.

  "Her?" The man seemed disbelieving. "I congratulated her on not being a traitor."

  Caden's eyes darkened. "Now what would make you think she was?"

  Brutality settled over his features as those nearby went still, aware they were in the presence of something dangerous. Reminded that Caden was one of the most ruthless among them, thought even more merciless than the Warlord.

  "They're all thinking it," Eva snapped, finally fed up. She glared at the infernal man who wouldn't let this drop. "Even your general. They're all waiting for the moment I flip."

  She started to stalk off but stopped, whirling to face him before taking several steps toward him again, her expression full of wrath. "Furthermore, I have no need of your rescue, Anateri."

  He raised an eyebrow, his eyes narrowing and his expression slightly disbelieving. "Is that so? I couldn't tell yesterday, when I had to haul your ass out of the way to keep you from being crushed by the boulder a giant had thrown at you."

  Eva's mouth snapped shut against the many responses she wanted to spew. For a moment, they were locked into a glaring match. Neither wanting to give ground.

  Eva became aware they had become the center of attention. Fiona stared at her in disbelief before mouthing, “what are you doing?”

  Eva didn't know, but she really wished someone would tell her. Every time she resolved not to poke the beast in Caden, she found herself unable to restrain herself.

  The fire fox leapt off Caia's back, forcing Eva to catch him and breaking the tense moment.

  It was hard to pull off intimidating with an armful of furry adorableness, so she settled for snapping, "Oh, go kill something already."

  She stalked off without waiting for a reply, feeling vaguely proud of herself when she resisted the strong urge to kick any of the watching Trateri.

  They stared at her as if they didn't recognize the meek herd mistress in the wild fury.

  "I already did," Caden shouted.

  Eva kept going, not responding. She was counting the days until they reached the herd lands and she could be away from the annoying pest. Any gratitude for what he'd done for her or relief that he was safe, disappeared under the weight of her irritation.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Caden watched E
va stalk off, her fury hanging like a cloud around her.

  The dapple gray horse sent Caden a look saying this was all his fault before trotting after her mistress.

  Caden's hands tightened as he fought down the urge to go after Eva. That would likely only make the situation worse.

  Eva was a proud woman. He'd erred in interfering the way he did. She didn’t need it, not when she'd struggled on her own for this long, making a name for herself, finding acceptance despite the drawback of her birth.

  His fingers squeezed, his victim letting out a small whimper and reminding Caden of the man he still held. For a minute he wrestled with the urge to continue squeezing, to show the man the true meaning of pain. Slowly, as if moving too fast would break the tight leash he had on himself, Caden released the man in his grip.

  The man backed away, one hand going to his neck as he kept his gaze on Caden.

  Caden regarded him impassively, waiting to see what he'd do, as Darius and the Anateri looked on.

  "Alright, alright, that's enough of that," Fiona said, appearing and slapping the Trateri on the shoulder. "We're all going to go our separate ways and act civil. Aren't we, Commander?'

  Caden leveled a steady gaze on the woman, slightly amused she dared give him orders.

  That seemed answer enough to satisfy her.

  "There, all settled." She gave the man a sideways look. "Just to be clear. You won't be bandying that word around in connection with the herd mistress again or the commander won't be the only one after your throat."

  The man flicked a glance at all of them, his expression darkening.

  "That'll be all, Loren," Darius said in clear dismissal.

  Where Loren might have pushed back against Caden and Fiona, he wouldn't dare with Darius. Darius was his general, and his word was absolute. Loren's mouth snapped shut and with a stiff nod he strode off.

  Darius waited until it was just the Anateri and them, Fiona and Hanna listening before he glanced at Caden. "I can see how impartial you are to the herd mistress. I've seen the little thorn she wields. It's awfully familiar. Some might even say it’s an exact replica of yours."

  Caden flicked a sour glance at the man.

  Darius's lips curved up in a slight smile, amused that he'd found a way to pull the normally unflappable Caden's tail.