‘Do you think it wise after what we experienced here? They are going to think we are coming to attack them.’
‘Then let us sail past Fifth and around to your father.’
‘We are supposed to visit the Sacred Isle first.’ Lis could hear the whine in her voice. But she didn’t know where it had come from. She longed to see her father, and her sister. She gulped down the tears that threatened to run over and nodded mutely.
He pulled her close again. She tried to focus on his skin, the strength of his arms around her, and assure her body she was safe, but the barrier held, although she felt it pull tighter against her skin.
He held her tighter than he had before. She could feel the fear and desperation in the tension of his arms, and again her own fears flared, pushing out the barrier to form a cushion between them.
‘Rest. When we get closer, I’ll come for you. I think we should stand on the deck together.’
‘So that they can pick us off together?’
‘It may not be the same as Fourth.’
It felt like only moments later that he was back at the door, indicating it was time to go up to the deck. She was shaky on her legs, but she changed and took his hand, then followed him up into the cool breeze. Wei-Song smiled, and Yang gave her a nod. The general looked a little wary, and she couldn’t see the hunter. She could have reached out for him, but she didn’t want to experience whatever disappointment he was feeling.
Instead she focused on the shores of Fifth, reminded of the day she had left her little island and sailed towards the Palace Isle for the first time, on what she had thought would be a quick visit but had instead changed her life forever.
There were a few people dotted along the beach. Lis raised her arm as she had done that day, and they waved back. She breathed a sigh of relief. But there were few of them, so she wondered where the other members of the island were and what they were planning. She turned away then, her chest tight and a sick feeling growing in her stomach.
‘Lis?’ Remi asked, reaching out to take her hand.
‘War is coming,’ she whispered. ‘We can’t stop it; we have only fuelled it.’
They sailed out beyond Fifth and then slowly turned around, heading out towards the vast ocean, and for a moment Lis hoped they could continue out that way forever. Then her little island appeared in the distance, and she moved to the front of the ship to watch it grow larger. No one came to join her. No one came near.
Chapter 21
No one waited on the little pier for them, and it looked more run down than Lis remembered. Had it been so long since she had been home? She felt a moment of fear that the boat wouldn’t be able to reach it, but it did, and she remembered just how deep the water was. She closed her eyes, remembering jumping from the end with her sister on hot summer days to her mother’s cries of fear.
As she raced down the plank, she again wondered why her father hadn’t come, and then she was running along the pier, along the path and standing before the house. Despite her little palace, the house didn’t look as big as she remembered it. She had only been back once after she had settled on the Palace Isle, and she was sure it hadn’t looked any different from how it did now. It was almost like the house itself was sad.
The field beside the house was awash with flowers yet to open. She half expected to see Peng standing amidst the field. A strange panic filled her chest. She willed the flowers to bloom with barely a glance and headed into the house. Remi followed not far behind.
She found her father in the main room, sitting over a table. He looked half asleep, the room a mess around him, too many empty bottles of rice wine to count.
‘Where is Ting?’ she asked. ‘How could she let you get to this point?’ When he looked up with sad eyes, she stopped. ‘She was sent home from the island,’ she murmured, not thinking about what their sending her away would have done to him. ‘What of Peng? Where is he?’
Her father only shook his head. He didn’t try to rise or greet her.
‘Father?’ she said softly, kneeling before his table.
He shook his head again, and when she felt the overwhelming loss sweep over her, she couldn’t stop the barrier from pushing out further.
The table he leaned against moved slowly across the floor, and he was pushed back.
‘No,’ Remi said. When she turned, he stood with his hand out towards the door, and she saw Wei-Song waiting.
‘Where is she?’ Lis asked, climbing to her feet.
‘We sent her home. The child feared for her at the school.’
‘Feared for her?’ Lis asked.
‘That her child would die there and bring trouble to them,’ her father half cried, half coughed.
Lis continued to stare at Wei-Song.
‘She wasn’t clear about what she saw, but she thought that if the child died, Ting would blame you.’
‘If the child died? Your little vision girl saw clearly that the child would die, and that was why she sent her away. Did she also see that Ting would go with her?’
Lis felt the ground sway beneath her feet, and then she was sitting on the floor. The world was hazy around her. She looked back at Wei-Song, who shook her head. And then Remi was kneeling on the floor beside her. ‘When?’ she asked, wondering if her voice worked at all or if she had only asked in her head.
Her father mumbled something that she didn’t catch.
‘Where is Peng?’ she asked.
‘Gone,’ he slurred, lifting another jug of wine, only it was empty. He threw it across the floor, and then the cup followed it.
‘Why would he leave you? Where would he go?’
‘To raise an army against the magics who killed his wife.’
Lis shook her head.
‘He blames you,’ he said, his finger sharp and surprisingly steady as he pointed at Lis.
‘I was trying to save her,’ she cried.
Remi groaned as the force of the shield hit him, and her father was pushed against the far wall of the room, the table and bottles following him.
‘Stop!’ the hunter shouted from the doorway.
Lis turned to him, and the hurt crashed in on her. Then Remi was holding her close.
‘What has got into her?’ the hunter asked.
‘She hasn’t been herself at all today. She was like this before we reached Fourth. She is protecting herself, but I’m not sure what from. Her barrier is up, and she can’t or won’t lower it,’ Remi said.
‘Get Yang to look at her.’
‘He has tried, but he can’t get close enough.’
Lis couldn’t understand what was happening to her, and now she had attacked her father—but her sister was gone, and he was lost, and nothing in the world made sense anymore. When had she died? Why had no one told her? Or had her father been unable to share the news with the world?
She clung to Remi. Nothing made any sense. Her strong father was a mess, looking broken and scared. Had Wei-Song told her what the child had said? But the child no longer saw the world as she had.
It was all because of the phoenix, she was sure. Everything had changed at that point. The visions had stopped, and the emperor had accepted her. The world was confused, and she didn’t know where she fit.
She pulled herself into Remi’s lap and put her head to his shoulder. He sighed, and she could feel the relief flow from him as he closed his arms around her. And then Yang was there, whispering and calming, and she felt the barrier move. It didn’t disappear, but it let the two men into it. She tucked them in and held them safe within her net. Then Yang sat heavily on the floor.
Curiosity filled the little world she had locked them in. He smiled as he took her hand and rested it on his knee to feel her pulse. Worry mixed with the curiosity and her own confusion.
‘Breathe,’ Yang whispered, and she did.
He nodded once. She pulled the barrier back and then tried to release it. It held tight for a moment longer and then was gone. She knew she could call it back if needed.
; ‘I can sense everything around me, but amplified, as though the owner of the emotions is pushing them onto me.’
Yang nodded, and a small smile lit his face.
‘Am I sick?’
He shook his head.
‘Will it pass?’ Remi asked.
‘Not quickly.’
‘Yang,’ Lis cried, reaching for him. ‘What is wrong with me?’
‘You are with child,’ he said. ‘An extremely strong magical child. That explains the barrier, I hope, and why you feel as you do.’
‘Confused,’ she murmured. She had only just become a wife. Was she ready to be a mother as well?
Her father clambered to his feet and staggered. ‘General,’ Lis called. ‘Would you see my father to the boat? I don’t think he should stay here any longer.’
‘Don’t worry, Lis,’ her father slurred as the general reached for him. ‘I will protect you.’
She nodded and then curled back into Remi’s arms.
Chapter 22
Lis stood before the emperor and empress and looked at the floor.
‘It wasn’t an attack,’ Remi said, again.
‘You were supposed to be helping the people, finding out what they want, bringing this Empire back together. Instead you land on Fourth and attack the people. They will side with the magics whether they want to or not, just to remove us.’
The general sighed.
‘It is my fault,’ Lis said.
‘She isn’t well,’ Yang said, and she felt the frustration flow from Remi. Mixed with the anger of the emperor and the disappointment of the empress, it was overwhelming. Lis wanted only to sit down.
Advisor Gan was surprisingly quiet, and Lis wondered whose side he would take. She watched him for a moment, then bowed low before the emperor again. ‘Forgive me, Your Eminence,’ she said, ‘but I need to rest.’
‘Do you feel unwell?’ Remi asked, leaning over her.
‘I don’t feel myself,’ she admitted, her head pounding. ‘I’ll go back to the laundry.’ She climbed to her feet, feeling more unsteady.
‘I think we could find something more suitable,’ the empress said, stepping forward.
Lis took a step back. She didn’t know what she might do in her current state, and she didn’t want to risk the empress. ‘It is suitable.’ She bowed again and then headed out of the room.
Remi jogged after her.
‘You need to talk with your father,’ she said. She turned her hand, and the pins that had held her hair so tight against her head appeared in her hand. She handed them to Remi and ran her fingers through her hair. ‘I just need to be away from people.’
‘Away?’ he asked, pulling her to a stop.
‘I feel everything,’ she said. ‘It confuses my senses, and I’m worried what I might do with it.’
‘And your father?’
‘I’m not ready to see him yet.’ She shivered at the idea of the turmoil of emotions he would radiate.
He nodded slowly and kissed her forehead. ‘I’ll find someone to take you back.’
‘I can find the way.’
‘Not on your own. There may be magics waiting for an opportunity…’
‘Just let them try,’ she said. ‘I have been taking down those I care for; imagine what I could do to those who threaten me.’
A guard appeared from the doorway and bowed low. ‘I can ensure she makes it back to the laundry safely.’
Lis tried not to sigh as Remi nodded. He watched as she walked out into the morning sunshine, the guard a few steps behind. She could feel Remi’s concern follow her, and she wondered how long this was going to last. If something did happen, such as an attack from the magics, she wasn’t going to be able to defend anyone; she would be too overwhelmed by the emotions of those around her. If she could find a way to channel them back again, that would be useful.
The silence of the island was comforting, and she felt far more like herself when she made it back to the laundry. Although she could feel her father’s sadness, it was lessened, and she imagined he must be sleeping in one of the small rooms. The guard bowed and then returned the way they had come.
The sheets had finally been taken down, and she could smell hot broth. Yang sat cross-legged in the dirt over a small fire with a sturdy pot. He projected a calmness that she hadn’t felt in some time as she walked across to join him.
‘That smells nice,’ she said, sitting on the edge of the step that led to the covered walkway.
‘I thought it might help you sleep or rest, and it had some effect on your father.’
‘He hasn’t really allowed himself the time to grieve,’ she said softly. It was not so long ago that he had lost her mother, and then Ting along with her child. ‘The child came early,’ Lis said.
Yang nodded as he stirred the soup. ‘How do you feel?’ he asked.
‘I hurt,’ she murmured, ‘but I’m too overwhelmed with everyone else to focus on myself, and I’m not sure that I should. I fear what might happen.’
‘Your barrier?’
‘Or worse. What if I attack those around me?’
‘I’m sure you will be fine,’ he said.
‘You don’t know that,’ she said, more harshly than she intended.
‘Your body is adjusting. It is all very new at this stage, and once you have had the chance to settle into your condition, things may be different.’
‘Maybe. What do we know of other magics with children? Surely, they had them, or we wouldn’t have the magics we have now. But did they all lose control?’
‘Maybe it is the child.’
‘Can you tell if the child is a boy?’
‘Does it matter?’ Yang asked.
Lis stared at him. ‘Of course, it matters. The eldest child of the Rei-Een Empire is always a boy.’
‘Is it? We know what they do when they don’t feel the child is what they want. Look at Wei-Song—do you think she would have been allowed to live if she were the eldest, magic or not?’
‘Do you think they kept the magic secret before now if it was born into the royal line?’
Yang shrugged and refocused on the pot before him.
‘Remi said there was no magic in the royal line. But he has it. This child may have it.’
‘I certainly felt something.’
‘Yang,’ Lis said softly. ‘What if it was me you felt? Can you tell if it is a boy?’
He looked up at her seriously. ‘It is too early to tell such things.’
‘Then how can you be sure the magic is so strong?’
He put down the spoon. ‘I can.’
‘But you couldn’t get close enough before. Look again, please, and see what this child is.’
He put his hand on her arm and closed his eyes. She watched his brow furrow.
‘Tell me,’ she whispered.
‘I’m not sure,’ he said slowly. ‘I can’t sense the magic at all.’
‘So, it was mine.’
‘You sound relieved,’ he said, moving back to his pot.
‘Actually, I think it would be nice to work magic together, see what the child can do. My parents lived in fear of capture, and although they let me play with my skills, they never encouraged me to test them or see just what I could do. They never taught me what I could be. I had to learn on my own, in the midst of battle. I don’t want that for my child.’
‘I’m sorry,’ her father said, leaning against the doorframe of his room. ‘We couldn’t encourage you. If the hunters sensed you, they may have traced you and killed you at any stage. I spent half my life watching for them.’
‘They couldn’t sense me,’ she said.
‘We didn’t know that. We didn’t know what you were.’
‘I was happy,’ she said softly.
‘But it wasn’t enough,’ he said, taking a shaky step forward and sitting heavily. ‘And now you are more lost than before.’
‘Now I am more a danger to the Empire than its chance to save it.’
‘You saved the
prince,’ he said.
‘I nearly killed him,’ she returned. She was so sure that she had, and she didn’t know what she could do to make it better.
Yang held out a bowl of broth, which she took without hesitation to sip at. It was hot and good, and it helped calm the turmoil that burned within her. They sat in silence for some time. Lis could feel their uncertainty, but she tried not to focus on it. She wondered how Remi’s discussions were going with his parents. It had been his mother’s idea for them to marry early, and Lis wondered if she regretted it already. The empress had been such a stern, cold woman when Lis had first entered the hidden palace. She hadn’t wanted Lis at all, yet it had been her choice.
It was the loss of her son and the confusion that followed that Lis thought was the reason behind it. And as much as she had cared for U’Shi, she had accepted Lis for who she was without question. Lis wondered if they would still be as accepting if they ended up in a war again, all because she was too overwhelmed by fear to know what she was doing.
She stood slowly and headed into the big room. She nestled down within the blankets and closed her eyes. Another war was coming. She could feel it, but there was nothing she could do to stop it, for she feared she was the catalyst.
She was sorry they hadn’t been able to visit Fifth. It was the one place she had known, and she wanted to revisit the temples and families that she knew. She wondered if Peng and his family would have spoken to her, or if he would have openly blamed her for her sister’s death.
Lis had only wanted to keep her safe, and safe from Peng. He had smiled and laughed when she played her magic tricks, opening flowers and creating little paths amongst the stems. Would that have changed if they had married? Would he have looked at her differently if he had seen what she could really do?
Her head pounded, and she tried to think about her child and the joy the news would bring. She wondered if Remi had told his parents. There were enough who knew the truth, such as those who had been inside her father’s house when Yang had discovered the reason behind her odd behaviour. Was the child trying to protect itself, or was it her body knowing the danger they were in?
The Magics of Rei-Een Box Set Page 68
