Vessel of the Gods Boxed Set

by Jada Fisher

  She pressed her lips together, willing herself not to speak even though she very much wanted to. “Alright.”

  “Good, thank you. In any case, I came to ask if you wanted to go on a walk with me. Maybe once around the manor? I need to test this on uneven ground.”

  “Are you sure you’re up for that?”

  His eyes flashed teasingly. “Why, you think I’m weak?”

  “No, she’s just the worst mix of mother and vengeful spirit,” Cassinda said, setting aside the tome she had been reading. “Always worried and willing to smite anyone who dares do anything wrong.”

  “I am not the spirit of vengeance, actually,” Ukrah said somewhat primly. “I’m the spirit of justice and protection.”

  “Uh-huh, and that matters so much in our day-to-day lives.”

  “Actually,” Marcellin said with a bit of a crooked smile. “I think I might be that.”

  Ukrah blinked at the young man, surprised. “Excuse me?”

  “Well, you know, spending a good few months on death’s door had me reading a lot or otherwise floating through delirium. And in those patches, I kind of got to know the, uh, spirit inside of me a bit. So I think I might be pretty strongly linked to vengeance. Or maybe it’s retribution? Not sure which, or if it even matters. I would have thought I was justice if you apparently didn’t have all of that going on inside of you.”

  “We should ask Tayir,” Cassinda said, standing and stretching. Ukrah noticed that she was no longer wearing her beautiful gowns like she always had when they’d first met, instead taking after Eist’s fashion with breeches and jerkins or tunics. The desert girl found it interesting but didn’t comment on it. “Where is he?”

  “Probably out in the orchard,” Ukrah said. “He’s been more and more concerned since the attack.”

  “I don’t blame him. We all know that they did it to try to get more information on where the vessels are. They’re hunting us and our others down.”

  “That seems particularly bad,” Marcellin murmured. “I’ll admit, I’m not overly understanding of this whole situation still, but that doesn’t sound good.”

  “It’s not. There’s a lot of power within all of us, and if it fell into the wrong hands, or if we failed in general… I suppose it’s world-ending stuff.”

  “Great, that’s exactly what I wanted on my plate.”

  Cassinda came forward, wrapping her arm around Marcellin’s waist like it was the most natural thing. “Come on, Crispin and Voirdr happen to be napping at the same time as Helena and the baby. Let’s go on that walk of yours.”

  Ukrah came up along his other side. There would have been a time where touching him would have made her nervous. Some pale-faced boy from the civilized lands who she didn’t know that well. A lot had changed since she was fourteen, it seemed.

  The three of them headed out, taking their time. They made it down to the stairs and almost to the door before Marcellin needed to sit for a minute on the chaise and Cassinda ran to fetch him some water. Ukrah didn’t mind, however, but perhaps she stared at the young man a bit too hard as she studied him.

  “Do I have something on my face?”

  She blinked and felt herself flush. “Uh, no, sorry. Just lost in thought.”

  “I imagine you have a lot to think about.”

  “I certainly do.”

  “So…you know, I never really heard the story of how you came here.”

  Ukrah gave him an uncertain sort of sidelong look. “I am fairly certain I told you about—”

  “No, I know about your village. I mean, how did you get from there to here? That’s a long journey to make by yourself.”

  “I had help. I ran into some slavers and let them kidnap me to take me across the border of the wilds. I don’t know if I would have made it without them, ironically, because they almost killed me several times.”

  “Huh, you’ve been through it, haven’t you?”

  She shrugged. “All of us have our stories.”

  “Yeah, I suppose you’re right.”

  The conversation faded, and they sat there a while until Cassinda returned with the water. She wasn’t in a rush however, and enjoyed the moment of quiet, just watching the clouds pass outside the window.

  She didn’t often get a chance to just stop and be a normal girl, looking out at the pretty sky. She always had something to do, or something to worry about. A threat looming over her or someone in her little family on death’s doorstep. It was an awful lot, and she was beginning to wonder if that was affecting her more than she would like.

  Eventually, however, Marcellin voiced that he was ready to try to walk out to the trees and back, and the three of them headed out. The air was cool against her face with the warmth of the sun streaming down gently. Ale’a and the other large dragon rider weren’t around, and she guessed that Eist was either in her planning room with Dille or at the site of the attack.

  None of them were allowed to go back to the grounds where the palace had been. Ukrah had no idea how much was still standing. She imagined there couldn’t be much left considering everything, but for some reason, she did want to see for herself.

  Not that she needed physical evidence to be any angrier. Every time she thought about that night, and the hate and greed that had caused it, her blood would heat.

  “I can feel you tensing right next to me,” Marcellin mused as they struggled along. “Either you really hate me, or you’re thinking about things you probably shouldn’t be.”

  Ukrah huffed a laugh, but it was Cassinda who spoke. “We’re always thinking about things we shouldn’t be. It’s the nature of the times.”

  Marcellin made an agreeing sound. “It’s a shame, that’s all.”

  “That it is,” Cassinda said with a sigh. “Maybe, when this is all over, we’ll all travel across the country and actually be young ones.”

  “If we live that long.”

  “Well, I don’t know about you,” the red-haired girl said, “but I plan on having a long, prosperous life just to spite everyone and everything that tried to shorten it.”

  Ukrah felt herself laugh in surprise at that. What a sentiment! She could get behind that, even if she couldn’t imagine life beyond her mission. She didn’t really have anything outside of being a vessel and the rider of a black dragon.

  The conversation lightened a bit after that, with the two bantering back and forth about things they would like to do while Ukrah listened. It was a nice break, even if it was short. Marcellin was beginning to tremble by the time they reached the trees.

  “Hey, can we sit down for a moment?” the boy asked breathlessly. A quick look at his face showed that he wasn’t ashen, but he was beginning to sweat.

  “Sure, let’s take in the day. It’s not often that everyone is conked out all at once.”

  They set him down against one of the sturdier ‘apple’ trees then arranged themselves on either side of him. There wasn’t any fruit laying around considering how early it was in the growth season, but she wasn’t hungry enough to be miffed about it.

  Sun-soaked and comfortable, she felt her eyelids flutter shut. She wasn’t quite napping, she was just…being. And it was nice.

  “Hey, do you hear something?”

  That was all that was said before a shadow crashed over them and once more, a dragon slammed into the ground a few lengths away.

  Instantly, Ukrah was thrown back into that battle, the sky flashing dark and all of the screams and burning around her. Her arms went up instinctively, trying to protect herself from things that weren’t there.

  “Is that Master Ain’s dragon?” Cassinda asked, her voice tight, bringing Ukrah back to the moment. She wasn’t in the battle. In fact, that battle was over. The fire was put out. Everyone who could be saved was saved. Those that couldn’t be saved were laid to rest.

  “Well, what are the two of you waiting for? Go help him!”

  Oh, right. Ukrah probably shouldn’t just be sitting there, staring at the golden drag
on laying on the ground, sides heaving.

  Compared to the battle they had just lived through, the dragon hadn’t hit as hard as the fallen beasts had during the attack. Which was probably a good thing, because Ukrah didn’t know what she would do if she was about to witness the death of one of those that had ousted the Three. He and his mount were a piece of history.

  She and Cassinda scrambled to their feet, dashing over to the site. The sheer noise of it must have reached the manor, because from the corner of her eye, she saw Crispin leaning his entire upper body out of his window. But she couldn’t waste any breaths trying to call to him. Her entire mind was focused on the two in front of her.

  They were both breathing, thank the spirits, but neither were in good shape. Lord Ain’s dragon let out a particularly heart-wrenching groan and slowly rolled onto his belly rather than his side, sniffing for his rider.

  But Lord Ain… Well, Lord Ain wasn’t moving.

  They crouched on either side of him, watching his armored chest rise and fall. Ukrah quickly documented his injuries in her head, sure that others would be rushing to them in just a moment.

  His shock white hair, bleached just as colorless as Elspeth’s, was almost pink from all the blood. Some had dried to a rusted, earthy brown at his roots and along the deep gash in his forehead, but most looked to be less than a day old. His armor was scorched and slashed, with one of his bracers and pauldrons missing. Both of his eyes looked blackened, but one had swollen completely shut and was a deep purple.

  She couldn’t be sure, but she thought she even saw a couple of human-shaped bites on him, like he had been in such an intense fight that it had come down to teeth and claws to survive. She wanted to ask him what happened, and oddly enough, if he was alright. She bit her tongue, however, knowing that he absolutely wasn’t.

  “You, desert girl,” he hissed through his swollen lips. She couldn’t be sure, but she was fairly certain that she saw some of his teeth broken inside of his mouth. “Get…your mother.”

  Before she could correct him at all, he let out a gurgling sound and Cassinda was screeching something, pushing at the man frantically. It took a beat for Ukrah to understand that she was ordering her to help roll him onto his side.

  Once her mind caught up with everything, she grabbed at the bit of his chainmail under his armor and pulled with all she had. Between the two of them, they got him onto his side so he could spit up whatever was filling his mouth.

  It turned out to be a mix of blood, bile, and spittle that made Ukrah’s stomach churn. She had seen worse, true, but it was still strange to see a man that was a literal legend reduced to such a state.

  It wasn’t much longer before footsteps sounded behind her, Crispin and Voirdr, the latter nudging and circling around Gael, the golden dragon, while whining. Ukrah would pay attention to them, but while the dragon was obviously hurt, he was in much better shape than his rider. Besides, it wasn’t like she could help that situation much when she was busy holding onto Ain’s clothing, making sure he didn’t roll onto his back and asphyxiate.

  Crispin didn’t even have to ask what to do. Taking care of Ukrah had apparently taught him plenty, because he was taking Ain’s head in his hand and supporting his neck without forcing him into any damaging position. She wished that Helena was there, because she could feel the stress pouring from Ain, filling the air and making it taste of blood and ash.

  “Spirits! Ain, what happened?!”

  She let out a breath that she hadn’t even been holding when Dille and Athar reached them. She didn’t trust herself to move, or look at them, so she just stayed holding him until Athar was moving her to the side and laying out a blanket where she had been.

  She was confused as she stumbled to the side, giving the giant a wide-eyed look. But he busied himself with gently rolling his friend onto the cloth then grabbing the corners.

  “Crispin. Get th-the other side. Walk smoothly and carefully with small s-steps.”

  The young blond nodded and then two of them were hauling him towards the manor, Eist and Helena coming out with Yacristjin crying slightly. Ukrah didn’t have to look at their faces to feel the horror that rippled through them, and it was only Cassinda’s grip on her shoulder that stopped her from bolting toward them.

  “We should get Marcellin,” she said, her face gray. “We won’t be any help to them right now.”

  “Yeah,” Ukrah agreed, although her eyes didn’t leave them. When she finally turned, she saw that the brindles, Fior, and the three red dragons that now lived at the manor all standing around Gael. She wasn’t quite sure what was going on, but they all were in a sort of bowing posture, Voirdr walking in a circle around them with a purpose.

  “I think he’s trying to save Gael,” Cassinda whispered.

  “I think you’re right.”

  “Hey, as much as this is important to watch, I would definitely like to be off the ground and inside before things start getting any more dramatic.”

  “Right. Sorry.”

  She understood his sentiment. It would be the perfect time for someone to make off with him or kill him, provided how distracted everyone was. And considering that witch hunters had managed to infiltrate the city enough to launch a successful attack against the palace, it wasn’t worth taking the risk.

  So she and Cassinda hastily helped him to his feet and walked back inside. But as they did, Ukrah couldn’t help but feel that the incident with Ain was far from over.

  4

  Don’t Punish the Messenger

  For the first time since she had come to the manor, they didn’t have enough rooms for everyone. The arrival of the bruised and bloody Ain triggered another shuffle, with Marcellin finally added to Crispin, Voirdr, Cassinda, and Ukrah’s room. It was mildly crowded, but the desert girl found that she liked it. It reminded her of how she was raised, with her and the other orphans all clustered together during dark nights and bright days.

  Strange, how much of her culture she seemed to have lost, to have grown away from, and yet something so simple put her at ease. She swore that she slept deeper, more restfully, which was saying something considering that she couldn’t get her mind off the wounded dragon rider just a few rooms away from her.

  She wasn’t allowed to see him, however. None of them were. While part of Ukrah knew that grievous and life-threatening injuries were just part of a dragon rider’s life, she couldn’t help but fear for the man.

  She didn’t even know that much about him. Only what everyone knew, really. That he was strong, and brave, and had dozens of eligible maidens lusting after him. That he didn’t seem to have any interest in marriage and was incredibly protective of his mother and siblings, who lived in Margaid. And yet she still felt attached to him in a way. He was one of the few people that Eist trusted. That Dille trusted. He had been with them through the worst of the worst and was still around. Still fighting the good fight.

  And it was because of that bizarre attachment that Ukrah found herself creeping toward his room after the sun went down, a pitcher of water in her hands in case he needed a refresher. She knew that technically she wasn’t supposed to go anywhere near his room, but it had been three days since he had crashed into the ground and all the healers had pretty much left.

  They’d given direction to the adults on how to take care of him, so she knew that he needed medical care, but it was general enough for them to be in charge of it on their own with all of their experience. She also knew that cleanliness was a huge part of healing and making sure that he didn’t get sicker, so they went through quite a bit of water with cleaning his bandages. Not to mention it was important that he drink often and plenty.

  His door was cracked as she approached it, no doubt so any of the adults could hear if he needed anything. She approached it, all ready to slip through and just place the pitcher and get out of there as soon as possible. But as she approached, she heard low voices speaking and she stopped right there by the open door.

  “What, were
you jealous of Eist getting all the attention?”

  “Yeah, that definitely was it,” Ain groaned, his voice raspy. “You know me, I just love attention.”

  “You could have died, Ain.”

  “I am aware. From what I hear, so could you.”

  Ukrah could practically hear the grimace in her voice as she spoke. “It will take more than just an attack on the palace to end me. If I wasn’t so busy protecting all of the younglings, I would have destroyed that entire army.”

  Ain let out a dry huff. “I know you’re strong, but you’re not bring-down-over-a-dozen-dragons strong.”

  “How would you know? You’ve hardly been around in the past few years. Being around vessels has increased my abilities exponentially.”

  “Ugh, not this again. You know how the world is out there. I’ve got duties.”

  “I’m aware,” she said, echoing his words. “I was simply stating a fact.”

  “Your tone was saying more than your words did. Let’s not play naïve.”

  “I’ll stop playing naïve when you do, or are we still pretending it’s your duty keeping you away from Rothaiche M’or and not your fear of what happened between us?”

  “Nothing happened between us.”

  “Oh, is that so?” Ukrah was intensely regretting her idea. She wanted to just set the pitcher down, but then they would know she was there. She debated backing away without leaving the water at all, but she felt rooted to the spot. “Then you won’t mind that Prillich inquired if I would be open to courting.”

  “Prillich is an idiot and politician,” Ain practically snarled, the vehemence in his normally-cool voice surprising Ukrah.

  “You say that about anyone who asks to court me, which is few and far between.”

  “Yeah, because most of the eligible bachelors around here are silver-spoon-fed buffoons that wouldn’t know how to treat the most powerful woman on the continent.”

  “For caddin’ sake, Ain! You need to either let me go or be willing to make some sort of commitment with me. I can’t stand… We live in dangerous times. If something happens to either of us, I need things to end knowing that we either could or couldn’t be.”