Page 35 of The Malice of Moons and Mages (The Broken Bonds of Magic #1)

Thirty-Five

Lua

L ua sheltered in a chimney’s shadow, grinding his teeth as Audra scrambled over the crumbling stones and rotting wood of fallen homes. She plunged her hands fearlessly into places unseen, and new scrapes appeared across his knuckles. Not that it mattered much. They both healed faster than even a few days ago and with barely any effort. As he watched, the smallest of the scrapes mended and vanished, the larger ones healing a moment later.

Her fervor left him unsettled and in awe of her perseverance. She’d scrutinize some piece of fabric, pottery, or toy, before tenderly reburying it. It was the fact that she cared enough about those long dead to tend to their memory in her own way that garnered his appreciation.

She brushed the hair from her eyes, leaving a dirty smear along her cheek. Her hair was growing fast, soon it might be past her chin. She’d look good either way. And with no small amount of surprise, he realized he looked at her often.

Audra caught his gaze. “This would go faster if you helped.”

“I don’t know what we’re looking for. ”

She paused, as if considering what to tell him. Finally, she said, “My mother’s scales.”

He remembered the image of red scales hanging over the hearth during Audra’s dream. They were plated together, like armor. “Dragon scales?”

She nodded. “Zin gave them to her for protection. She let it slip once when she was drinking.”

“Your mother?”

“No. Zin. It wasn’t pretty. Terrible memory actually. She nearly burned the house and barns down with Ferin and I inside. Stopped bringing home wine after that. She still asks for it though.”

His eyebrows arched. “How much wine does it take to...” He paused, shook his head. “Never mind, I don’t want to know. Why did Lorah leave them? Why didn’t she place them on you or your... Ferin?”

“My brother, don’t forget that. I don’t know why she grabbed her sword but not the scales.” She turned to the next pile. “I don’t think about that night if I can help it.”

He understood. Lua moved to her side and gently gripped her forearm. The warmth of her seeped into his gloves. “Must you always make things more difficult?”

“What are you doing?” She didn’t pull away.

“You need to learn some basics. Consider today your first lesson.”

“No, I don’t have?—”

“You’ve already proven that you do. What you did at the tower and our spontaneous bond is proof alone,” he said.

Audra’s breath was suddenly ragged at their connection. “What did I do?”

He ignored the question and steadied her hand. “Wait.”

She huffed.

“Close your eyes. I’ll lead you through.”

“Through what?”

“Close your damn eyes, Audra.” Her constant resistance was exhausting. Most people respected or feared him enough to be obedient. But mostly Audra had been frustrated by him. Annoyed, insulted. Angry. It was only lately those emotions had shifted to something softer .

She smirked and said sarcastically, “Yes, Moon Oji Lua.” Then she closed her eyes.

Lua chuckled, despite his pride. Maybe he did still want to kill her. “Take a breath. Feel the air on your skin, the beat of your heart. Find the thread, pull on it slightly. Feel it?”

She nodded as energy thrummed gently between them.

“Good. Find the colors of your magic.”

“Green?”

“Yes. Now send a single thread into the rubble. Imagine what you are looking for. Give the magic something to find. Do you understand?” Lua asked. He watched her teeth biting her lower lip in concentration. He cleared his throat and looked away. “Careful, like you’re helping a chick on its first flight, hold out your hand and see the magic moving forward.”

“Should I chant or something?”

“No. Simple spells with single intent don’t need it. With larger spells, the vibration of voice and tone can keep them focused.”

A single verdant strand spun from Audra’s fingers, skimming over the ruins. She gasped as it dove beneath, searching. Her eyes reflected the emerald hue as she watched it take another pass. Her wonder shifted something inside him.

Satisfied, the magic spiraled back into her hand and recoiled around their connection. Her laugh was filled with delight. He reluctantly released her and stepped away.

“Is it always like that?” Her cheeks were flushed. “Like you can do anything?”

“It’s probably different for everyone. But, yes, that’s what it feels like to me,” he said. She studied her hands before closing her eyes. There was the familiar tug behind his sternum. Her magic spun out again, scouring over the next building with increasing speed and snapping quickly back.

“Go slow. Build your accuracy before your speed,” he said.

“Why?”

“Whiplash can tear a spell’s fibers and those take time to heal. A strong recoil can sever a spell completely. Slow equals strength. At least, that’s what Silence believes.” He looked away, feeling suddenly awkward. “Try again. ”

Audra searched through more debris, pulling on Lua’s magic for strength when she fumbled. But, as with all bonds, it curled back around, recycling and strengthening each time it returned. He enjoyed the sensations from her as he wandered through the woods from a small distance. When she eventually found nothing, her new skills lessened the disappointment.

“I could’ve used this all the times I’ve searched for jade.” She settled on a rock across from him.

A skinned rabbit was roasting over a small fire pit beside the remains of her old home. Her eyebrows rose, questioning. He shrugged. “Magic.”

“When did your magic come?”

Lua stilled. There was so much she didn’t know, and he feared losing her if he revealed too much too soon. He was glad she hadn’t wanted to discuss the monastery. He had no desire to tell her that he’d been the one to fell the first tower years ago. That he’d been there when the Western mages were killed. There’d be no going back from that revelation. “A question for a question?” He offered.

She shrugged.

“The Rajav started our training young. I cast my first spell when I was five or six, I think. Destroyed several flowering bushes in the garden. Mother was furious.” A rare smile teased his lips before his expression clouded. “If you knew who I was in Oxton, would you have turned me over to your Starling friends?”

“Friend, singular.” Audra drew her knees to her chest. She didn’t answer right away. Her emotions swayed before she responded. “I don’t know. To say no feels like a lie, but I had to get the jade home, and I wasn’t going to let you stop me.”

Her answer brought him no comfort, but it was honest.

“Do you want to be Rajav?” she asked.

The question startled him. “It’s my birthright. My destiny.”

She stared at the fire, seeing something far away. “I understand, but just because that’s what others have decided for you doesn’t mean you need to accept it. Shouldn’t you have a choice in your own fate?”

He considered her words. Their meaning extended beyond him, but he couldn’t wholly grasp it. “I need to be Rajav for the sake of my people. Selene is selfish, cruel, and shortsighted. She’ll follow in our father’s footsteps and lead the Moon tribes into desolation. There is no other choice.” Something akin to sadness trickled down their connection, but Lua let it go. He rotated the spit, scents of roasting meat permeating the cool air. “What happened between you and that Starling mage?”

She glanced at him. “We were friends, then lovers. I don’t know what we are anymore. I still care about him, if that’s what you’re after, but probably not in the way he wants me to.” She took a deep breath. “You had four anchors before, right?”

“Yes.”

“What happened to them?”

“That’s a different question,” Lua said. She frowned, but acquiesced. “What will happen to Ferin if the jade works?”

“There’s no guarantee it will. The Moon’s spell warped his growth. Zin hoped it would be a catalyst. Get him to the form he should have reached by now. If it works, then his sheer size will overwhelm the spell. In theory, anyway.”

“How big should he be?”

She smiled wickedly. “That’s two questions.”

“So it is.” He smiled back.

“What happened with your last anchors, starting from the first? It’s still one question, but I need to know.”

He turned the rabbit on the spit, eyes gone wistful as the flames reflected in them. “Eras was my first anchor. I was a bit younger than you when I hit my tenth star. She was older, more worldly.” His eyes dazzled at the memory.

“You loved her.”

“Completely. She was my first love. And my first heartbreak.”

Audra rested her chin on her knees, tilting her head. “What happened?”

“The bond takes a lot from an anchor. She lasted almost twenty years.” He poked at the fire with a long stick. He didn’t want to darken this moment by telling Audra the truth. Magical bonds slowly siphon anchors until they linger on death’s doorstep. “Her passing nearly killed me. It would have if there wasn’t another anchor at the ready. When our bond broke, the monks tethered me to Jude. He was an ass. Good in a fight but my father’s loyalist first. I swear he lasted a long time out of spite alone. Next was, Kristo.” Lua sighed. “He was handsome, born to be admired. We were lovers for a time. But he had the luxury of taking others.”

“And you didn’t?” she asked. Lua ignored the question. “And Dain?”

His jaw tightened. “Dain was a good man. I can say it now, and I can almost believe it even though...” He turned the rabbit again, pretending the smoke caused his eyes to water so he could wipe them. “Dain turned the bolt into my back.”

Flickering firelight danced across Audra’s face as the evening settled around them.

“After sixteen years together, I never suspected a thing. He’d always been a quiet man so when he cut himself off...” He cleared his throat.

“Why’d he do it?”

“Selene used his child as leverage. She knew I’d never expect it.” The dancing shadows revealed the deep hurt lingering in his expression. Audra lifted the spit carefully from the fire and tore off a steaming leg. She handed it to him.

He waved it away. “It’s for you.”

“We grow strong together.” She shoved it at him. “Eat. Don’t make me kick you, Moonie.” Steam rose from between her teeth as she took a bite, watching until he did the same. “What happened?”

Lua swallowed and met her gaze. “I siphoned every ounce of magic from the lives on that ship. Then I covered Starling and killed him.”

“You covered Starling?” Her eyes widened. A strange expression moved across her face. “How?”

“It’s a twelfth level spell. Twelve strings held simultaneously, only possible if there are clouds already available. Chanting helps. I’d only cast it once before.”

Her lips pressed thin. She swallowed hard. “And your bond?”

“I exhausted my magic to sever our connection and prevent the process from killing me.” Hair had slipped from the topknot and framed the sharp angles of his face. “A few more hours in the water, and I would have died. But, as chance would have it, a disagreeable thief fished me out.”

Audra snorted. “Didn’t have a choice. It was rescue you or drown.”

They sat quietly until the fire cracked.

“Audra.” His voice was full of admonishment. “What does Zin want?”

She looked at him cautiously. “To restore the Western tribes and bring back the dragons.”

Dread settled in the pit of his stomach. His father devoted most of his life to eliminating them.

“What does Selene—” Audra started.

“I’m tired.” With a swipe of his hand, the fire sputtered out.

“What are you doing? It’s freezing .”

“Then use your magic to make a fire.”

“I can’t.”

“You’ve never tried,” he said. “Either start the fire or get some rest. We should leave soon.”

“Asshole,” she whispered, but that only made him laugh. “You still want to go to the monastery?” Audra shifted uncomfortably. “Those were your people back there. We should head back to Auntie’s.”

“Those were my sister’s people. My tribe needs me, Audra,” he said. A weight settled between them. “I must get there before the eclipses.”

“Westerners never fare well in the north,” she said softly. “What if they try to separate us?”

“That won’t happen without my consent, and I have no intention of giving it.” He stopped himself from saying more. Their honesty was too new to risk pushing further. “I swear on my life that I won’t let anything happen to you.” He leaned toward her, silver eyes bearing into hers. Her desperation of wanting to believe him, the trepidation that her fragile trust might be betrayed, swept toward him. “You’re safe with me.”

She swallowed and turned abruptly away, poking at the embers with a stick. “On foot?”

“Selene’s people would have taken their horses with them by now.”

She sighed. “I guess we could go through the spires.”

“Spires? ”

“Old dragon territory north of here.”

“You’ve been there?”

She shook her head. “No, but no one else will go that way, especially this time of year.”

“‘Old dragon territory’ is not exactly a reassuring image,” he said.

“We can pick up supplies in Stonetown before crossing.”

He rubbed his chin. “How far are we from Stonetown?”

“A day. Then possibly another through the spires. It would shave off some distance.” She rubbed the back of her arms.

That would get them to the monastery with time to spare, let Audra get comfortable before the coronation. He hadn’t told her that the alternative to cutting their bond was she’d be made Raani, the official title for the Rajav’s anchor. Her dreams of returning the Western tribe and dragons would have to be put aside. It would be best to have that conversation somewhere her reaction could be contained. Then, with the council behind him, he’d determine what to do about Selene. Bolin being Audra’s brother turned the situation into a more delicate matter. Together he and Audra might be able to figure it out.

Lua nodded to himself. “We’ll leave when the moons are up.” He smiled at her as she shivered. “A fire would be nice though.”