The Guardian Prince, page 27
Elise looked at him sideways, her glance as calculating as his question had been. “I’ll tell you if you take me with you.”
“Aodhan,” Sabine interrupted, filling her voice with the tone of request, “may I speak with you please?”
The Aethel prince cast a glance at Gaelan, who nodded and shifted to a more official guarding position in front of Elise. Motioning to Koen to join them, Aodhan withdrew with Sabine to the labyrinth entrance.
“It’s a trap,” Sabine stated flatly, her voice low. “I recognize my sister’s behavior. She has a plan.”
Aodhan nodded. “I assumed as much. However, perhaps we could use it to our advantage. Koen, what do you think?”
“The litri will allow the Emissary to track us,” the Dryht said, his expression calculating, “but I can buffer that as I did with Sabine. Those squads in the labyrinth are more concerning—they have to come out some time. We don’t want to be boxed in here with Rüddan on both sides. Although this girl will likely lead the Emissary to us, it may put us in a better position to fight.”
Aodhan nodded again. “I was thinking much the same.” Turning back to Elise, he raised his voice and said, “Tell us what you know, and you may join us.”
Elise shot Aodhan a patronizing look. “Break the charm first, then I’ll tell you what I know.”
Sabine’s mouth dropped open, but she closed it quickly and suppressed a grin. Elise could not know she had just issued a command to the Aethel prince, but Sabine doubted it would have changed anything if she did.
“Very well,” Aodhan appeared resigned, but Sabine recognized his expression from their emnien matches. The Aethel somehow had Elise exactly where he wanted her. Gesturing to Koen to proceed, Aodhan took Gaelan aside and began speaking to him in an undertone.
Sabine watched as Koen had Elise lay on the ground then sat beside her and closed his eyes. Sabine could tell the instant the litri’s hold was relaxed, for some of the lines in Elise’s face smoothed and some of the tension disappeared. A few moments later Koen and Elise opened their eyes.
Elise’s expression looked hopeful but guarded. “That’s it, then?”
Sabine regarded her sister, debating whether or not to tell her the whole truth. Recalling how betrayed she had felt when she discovered the litri was not completely dissolved, she decided it couldn’t hurt. “Not exactly. The charm is greatly relaxed but not broken. A friend of mine assures me that I’m the only one who can break it completely, but I have yet to figure out how. It will still trigger, and it will still hurt, but you will remain conscious, and you’ll be able to function on some level.”
Elise inhaled deeply, then nodded. “The Emissary has her soldiers spread all over the place, searching for you in case you find a different way out of the labyrinth, so her forces are considerably thinned. However, she found your horses and has a double guard stationed there. She only waits for a signal. Once she receives it, she will join whichever squad finds you. All you have to do is overtake them before they give the signal.”
“And that signal would be?” Gaelan prompted.
Elise shrugged. “That’s more than I know. But if you want to take any action, you better do it now. Another squad will be coming through here soon.”
“Why the rush, Elise?” Sabine narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “Who knows you’re here? Who’s waiting on the other side of the waterfall?”
Elise rolled her eyes and huffed. “Because I want to go home! I’ve been subject to this maniacal Rüddan for who knows how many sennites, and I’m tired of it. The Emissary sent me to take care of some things, so she won’t expect me for a while, but if you don’t move now, you will lose your chance.”
Aodhan and Sabine exchanged glances.
“Gaelan and I will lead,” he said, “Koen will cover the rear. You stay close to your sister.”
Sabine nodded, then followed Gaelan and Aodhan through the waterfall.
As Elise had said, no Rüddan waited on the other side. The stillness of the early morning was complete, undisturbed by anything except the thought-numbing crash of falling water. Sabine and her companions crept back the way they had come, pausing only long enough to look for Tayte at the beach guard tent. Sabine’s stomach clenched when they didn’t find him there, but she tried to keep her fear in check by reasoning that he must have snuck away when he noticed the Rüddan had begun searching for them.
The climb up the canyon seemed to last twice as long as the trip down, but Sabine was pretty sure that was because she was more on edge. The rising sun illuminated the cliff face, and every Rüddan was alerted to their presence. They could be spotted at any moment. Sabine felt as exposed as a deer who had been startled from hiding.
“How’s your head?” she asked Elise once they reached the top of the cliff. Naois must have noticed her sister’s absence by now. Why wasn’t Elise struggling with any signs of a headache yet?
“Fine.” When Sabine just stared at her, Elise added, “The list of things the Emissary wanted me to do would normally take a while to complete. She won’t be looking for me yet.”
If she needs to look for you at all. Although the thought sprang into her mind unbidden, Sabine couldn’t convince herself that she was just being silly. She wanted with all of her heart to believe Elise truly was running away of her own free will, but her intuition whispered that there was more to it. Even so, what could she do? Aodhan and the others already suspected a trap. Still, watching her sister closely, Sabine wondered if there might actually be more than one.
A rustling among some nearby trees startled everyone in the group to attention. Aodhan and Gaelan drew their swords while Koen shifted his grip on his staff. A few moments later a Rüddan soldier stepped out from behind a nearby oak.
“Hold your swords,” the soldier called, raising his hands up at his sides while the sun glinted on the purple fabric binding his topknot and his face shimmered. “It’s just me.”
“Tayte,” Sabine breathed as his facial features settled into those of her friend. Aodhan and Gaelan lowered their swords but did not put them away, and Koen’s grip on his staff relaxed as Tayte joined them. Sabine hugged him quickly, trying to express all of her joy at finding him in that single, rapid motion. “We found Elise.”
“So I see,” Tayte murmured. Sabine was about to point out Tayte’s return to Elise, then remembered that her sister wouldn’t recognize him, anyway. He wasn’t wearing his Human disguise.
Given Sabine’s suspicion that Elise was up to something, perhaps that was a good thing. Instead, she introduced him as Taylion and let it go at that.
“See anything interesting?” Gaelan asked as Tayte settled in among them.
“Rüddan patrols everywhere,” Tayte replied. He cast a questioning look at Elise, who leaned against a tree, staring at the leaves overhead. Aodhan made some quick motion with his hand, which Sabine hoped meant free-to-talk-but-be-vague or possibly we-don’t-trust-the-new-Human. Whatever it signified. Tayte must have understood because he nodded subtly before continuing. “About twenty surround our horses.”
“Exactly as I told you,” Elise said without shifting her attention from the leaves. “Take them out before they give the signal, and we’re on our way.”
Sabine scanned the group. With only four fighters, that made five Rüddan for each of them. Terrible odds, unless Koen used his magic. If Sabine used Fyrleoht, that evened their chances a bit more.
If she could figure out how to use it, that is. If it was in Torian’s will for her to use it at all. Nothing had happened when she had tried at the labyrinth entrance.
As Aodhan and the others planned what to do next, Sabine scowled. Why did it always come down to “if”? Koen said the key was knowing Torian’s will, but how was that possible? She couldn’t exactly have a discussion with him. And while “Do not create,” and “Do not destroy,” were solid boundaries, “Ask in accordance with Torian’s will,” left too much unknown, too much unreliable for her liking.
“Sabine?” Aodhan’s voice cut through her thoughts. “Can you do that?”
“Umm,” Sabine hedged, flustered by being caught when not paying attention. “Go over it one more time, please?”
Tayte cast a curious glance her way. “We fight while you and Koen shield them so they can’t send a signal.”
“Their magic users will know when their line of communication is cut off,” Koen added, looking meaningfully at Sabine. “Since I will be fighting as well, you will need to carry the most responsibility for the shield. You create it, and I’ll supplement it.”
“Sure,” Sabine said, returning his glance with a meaningful one of her own. “I’ll try.”
“Trust Torian,” the Dryht replied.
Exhaling heavily, Sabine nodded.
Tayte’s face shimmered as he once again assumed the guise of the Rüddan he had been impersonating. Raising his bow from his shoulder, he fitted an arrow to the string and slipped into the trees to eliminate any scouts before the battle engaged.
The whole glen stilled, as if the entire group was holding its collective breath. Sabine strained to hear anything that would indicate Tayte’s progress. Even Elise sat tensely alert, her focus no longer trained on the leaves overhead.
After an interminable span of waiting, Tayte slipped back into the glen as silently as he had left it and nodded to Koen.
Koen glanced to Sabine. Wiping her palms against her thighs, she swallowed and nodded to show she was ready.
Turning her focus inward, Sabine imagined Rüddan soldiers spread through the camp she and her companions had established. She envisioned covering them with a clear dome similar to the one she had seen Naois cast at the battle in the firlan. Then, because she wasn’t sure if the Rüddan’s connection with the Emissary had to be linear, Sabine altered her mental image to completely encircle the entire area.
Torian, she half thought, half prayed, if it’s in your will.
It must have worked, because she felt a surge of energy leave her.
Surprised, she looked up to find Koen watching her. When she smiled at him—a large, genuine smile—his eyes twinkled. Turning to Aodhan, he murmured, “We’re ready.”
Hefting bows, swords, and a staff, Aodhan and the others disappeared into the surrounding wood. Sabine settled on the ground, her back against a tree. As she imagined holding her shield intact, she looked to her sister. “Now we wait.”
The moment the whispered words left her mouth, the sounds of battle filled the air. Shouts and grunts, moans, and the ring of metal on metal echoed through the woods, reverberating off the trees in such a way that it was hard to pinpoint exactly which direction they came from. Sabine’s muscles tingled with the need to join the others, to be part of what was going on, but she focused on maintaining the magic barriers instead.
That’s when the headache began.
Sabine didn’t even realize she was rubbing the spot behind her ear until she saw Elise doing the same thing. Eyeing her sister, Sabine froze in mid-motion, a sense of foreboding fluttering in her stomach. Somehow, the litri had been triggered.
Something had happened to alert Naois to their whereabouts. Without seeing the Rüddan that the others fought, it was hard to know for certain if her attempt to shield them was working. The feeling of energy slowly ebbing from her suggested it was, but the dull throb building at the base of her neck told her otherwise. Unsure what to do, she focused on her mental image of the shield, imagining the Rüddan completely surrounded without any cracks or openings.
Still, the headache built. Across from her, Elise scowled, her expression strained, and rubbed the base of her head once more.
Sabine grimaced. Time for a new strategy.
Standing, she tugged her sister’s arm. “Come on. We need to get to the others.”
She steered her sister in the direction she had seen the Aethel go, doing her best to follow the sounds of battle that echoed unpredictably off the trees. When she stumbled upon a Rüddan body with an arrow through the throat, she knew she was on the right track.
She found the main battle shortly after that. Dead Rüddan lay scattered about, but Aodhan and the others still appeared to be outnumbered two to one. Sabine could just make out their horses on the other side of the melee, snorting and stamping as they pulled against their tethers.
And still, the ache in Sabine’s head grew.
She had no way to warn the others. To call out to them would distract them; it might even cost them their lives. She doubted they would hear her over the din of the battle, anyway. Yet she had to do something.
The pain in her head spiked, triggering a surge of nausea. Reflectively, Sabine wished for some harrowroot to make it go away. A heartbeat later she recalled asking Koen for that exact thing in the labyrinth. He had cured her magically, instead, then chided her for not thinking of that solution on her own.
You could have done it yourself. The phrase echoed through Sabine’s thoughts, bouncing against the throb of the litri. The pain was so thick now that Naois must be close by, must have arrived at the battle.
Sabine peered into the fight, looking beyond where her companions fought against the Rüddan. Sure enough, Naois stood at the edge of the fighting.
The Emissary’s eyes locked with Sabine’s, and pain seared the right side of Sabine’s brain. Beside her, Elise groaned and fell to her knees. Yet somehow, they were both still conscious, and Sabine was able to move.
And to register that she no longer needed to expend energy on preventing the Rüddan from contacting Naois. Instead, she shifted her focus to shielding her companions from the Emissary’s attacks as Diera and Amala had done on the other side of Rhosynard.
Apparently, she was just in time. No sooner had she felt the energy leave her than she saw a spark of light flash over Koen’s right shoulder. He flinched but remained focused on the opponent he was beating back.
Naois glared at Sabine, and the pain in Sabine’s head ratcheted even higher. Somehow, she had to make this stop.
As each of her companions’ battles with the Rüddan ended, they turned against Naois, but the Emissary held them off with a shield of her own. Slowly, all physical activity stilled. The Aethel and Koen, realizing that their weapons were now useless, withdrew to stand beside Elsie and Sabine. More sparks showered around Naois, and Sabine realized that Koen was joining her in her magical defense.
“Give me the godstones,” Naois’s voice rang through the trees. “I will gain them in the end. You only postpone the inevitable.”
“What does she mean, ‘godstones’?” Sabine muttered. “We only have one.”
Koen drew close beside Sabine. As he did, Sabine recalled their last stand-off with the Rüddan Emissary. She remembered Tayte pulling her away while Koen covered their retreat, and she remembered the Aethel saying the Dryht had more power than she could know
He must carry his people’s godstone, she realized as she considered how Koen could have forced Naois to retreat all by himself that day.
“Sabine,” Koen urged from beside her, “use Fyrleoht. Add its power to your own, and we can overcome her.”
Before she could reply, a stab of agony seared the right side of her brain. Sabine fell to her knees while Elise screamed and curled into a ball.
“How?” Sabine groaned, unsure if she were asking Koen or Torian or both.
You are the keeper of your own chains, a memory answered with words Koen had said the last time Naois’s litri had threatened to overwhelm her.
What in Ceryn Roh does that mean? Sabine wondered through the stabbing pain. I just want to make it stop.
“Make it stop,” she muttered, begging Torian to take the pain away.
As soon as she uttered the plea, she realized how to break her chains, how to free her sister and herself. Glaring at Naois from where she knelt on the ground, Sabine yelled, “As Torian wills it, I command you to stop!”
Naois froze, and the pain in Sabine’s head dissolved.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Sabine blinked. Could it really be as simple as that? She rubbed her head, pressing against the base of her skull, but found no tenderness and no sparks of pain as a result of the pressure. Mystified, she glanced to the others.
No one made a sound except for Elise, who cried softly where she still lay curled in a fetal position. Everyone else stared at Naois, alert to see what she would do next, but the Rüddan Emissary just stood still. A few times the muscles in her arms, neck, or jaw appeared to clench, but otherwise she made no physical motion.
“She can’t move,” Sabine murmured in wonder as Gaelan slowly approached the Emissary. “I told her to stop, and now she has. Completely.”
Sabine stared at Naois in awe, her mind swamped with questions. Why had Torian granted this request when he had denied so many others? And why in this way? The only question she voiced, however, was, “What do we do next?”
“Kill her while we have the chance.” Gaelan moved before anyone else could respond, swinging his sword at the Emissary’s neck. Instead of severing her head from her shoulders, however, the sword just bounced away as if deflected. Gaelan tried again, swinging from the other direction but only experienced the same result.
“Her defenses must still be intact,” Koen said before Gaelan could swing a third time. “Torian must want us to leave without hurting her.”
“What?” Sabine almost yelled. “Why?”
The look the Dryht gave her made Sabine regret her outburst, but her question was valid. All the Dryht said was, “Who can know the will of the Morning Star? Perhaps he still has some use for the Emissary.”
Sabine glared at Naois, barely able to control her anger. Why the Creator God would have any use for someone such as her was unfathomable, but apparently Koen was right. There appeared to be nothing they could do to her.
“We shouldn’t stay here,” Elise said suddenly. She was sitting up now, eyeing Naois as if she expected the Emissary to lunge for her at any moment. “The others will be here soon.”
