Page 12

Chapter

Eleven

Liv

Eyes down. Don’t react. Blend in. My old mantra is of no use to me anymore.

Breathe. Hold. Breathe. The constant distraction of the Aethar and talking myself out of pain is how I make it through these long days on the boat.

“ I sn’t this city beautiful?” Maev spun on the bench, taking it all in.

I couldn’t recall how many days had gone by. I found no danger in the skies above us, and I wondered if the beast needed sleep as I did.

It took hours after seeing the tops of the massive trees before we finally reached Danuli, the river city in the Median of Veydes. High above us, the bottoms of massive branches swept over the river.

“From what I recall of Danuli, it’s situated on a river that eventually reaches the sea.

” Ollo faced his sister with an arm slung over the boat’s edge.

“We could purchase a better boat to sail us to Rydavas. But, since neither of us are sailors, I’d say we need a clever way to find a new ship so I can fly us home. ”

Ollo’s deep voice didn’t match his softer features.

He was not a rugged man like the Guards were.

The patterned lines and dashes formed a downward crescent over his brow, straight nose and high cheekbones.

His neck mirrored the pattern, with thicker lines running down between his collarbones and disappearing under his cloak.

The pitter-patter of rain stopped cascading off the top of the boat as we floated under the foliage high above. The reflection bouncing off the river was no longer a dull grey but a lush green, pulling us into a new world.

“The Danuli trees only grow along the rivers in the Median,” Maev explained. The trees above highlighted her blue skin with a green tint. “If you swim in these rivers, you will taste the salt from the seas. This is because they connect the two seas east and west of Veydes.”

“And the eels?”

Maev squinted sideways at her brother. “I’m sure the eels are scared away from the traffic of the city.”

The city was not what I had pictured. I expected something like Bellum with streets and squares. But Danuli was a city built within a forest of the tallest trees I had ever seen—built into the trees.

“The other cities along the rivers are also built into the trees, but none so large as Danuli. Homes and pathways are built onto the branches, and the markets rest near the roots below,” Maev added.

My grief ebbed long enough for the rain to ease for our arrival.

“Look, Olivia.” Maev pointed ahead. “The trunks of the trees are wider than that Guardian airship.”

Boats floated in and out of the massive rivers. Boardwalks interconnected the entire forest, with docks attached to the bottom of trees. The scope of Danuli was enormous, and I was reminded of how small I was. Next to the Danuli trees, I didn’t feel powerful at all.

Maev rocked the boat as she pointed above. “Ohhh, look up. Wonderful. Look how high the homes go.”

Citizens walked over bridges and along the paths set around giant roots. The river split into many paths, and for a time, we sailed in the city built entirely in trees and on water. The walkways multiplied as the trees grew denser, and soon enough, I found myself inside a sprawling city.

“What are those?” I pointed to the trees where massive shapes moved from limb to limb.

“You need to get out more, Saviour,” Ollo said. “Those are Danuli tree lizards.”

“Why are the lizards here the size of my shack?” I muttered. I had seen a cave lizard. It nearly killed Nuo. Now lizards in trees? “There’s a person on it!” I faced Ollo, my mouth agape.

“The Danuli lizards have wings, unlike their cousins that live in caves or swim in the seas. They can’t fly far, so they are used as transportation along the river cities.

Danuli has the largest population so you’ll likely encounter many.

” Ollo motioned to one gliding down from a tree.

“They save a lot of travel time for those that can tame one. But they’re temperamental. So don’t get too close.”

“How do you know this?” I asked.

“I read, Saviour.”

I folded my arms, muttering, “I would have read too, Aethar, if I’d had the books.”

Thunder rumbled in the distance, and Ollo’s face hardened. It was the only sign that he had heard me.

If I had come here before, the sight would have lit me from within. I would’ve run through the trees, dipped my toes in the water, and tasted the food. But he wasn’t here to show me around. Had he visited here before?

The wonder was wasted on me now.

“There is no loyalty in Danuli to the Guardians or the Council,” Ollo said, scanning the streets from where he operated the boat.

He was looking for Guardians, I imagined.

“Here, people are motivated by sales and trade, and the crimes are often simple theft and bad bargains. It’s a trading city and neutral.

Sometimes, Southlanders come, though they aren’t likely to stick around and mingle.

Even though Danuli is neutral, no one here likes Aethars .

Luckily, we don’t look like everyone expects us to. ”

The large branches above supported buildings and walkways between them. People were walking in the skies on the sprawling paths that extended from tree to tree like a chaotic spider’s web. I couldn’t understand how they built it.

When I asked Maev, she said, “The trees were grown like that over time, moved and bent in specific ways so that, eventually, the walkways were formed. Paths were carved into them and fortified over the years. We were taught about Danuli in world geography back home.

“The buildings up high are not carved into the trees but built up around them, living and growing with the trees over time. The structures on the top are the oldest and least used. You can see they are darker wood, stained over time by the weather. I’ve read that’s where the more questionable businesses operate. ”

The buildings closest to the bottom gleamed brightly with their glass windows and white siding. Had the sun been out, they would have sparkled like something out of a fairy tale.

“Let’s stop and get information from one of the shops here,” Ollo suggested.

“What information are you looking for?” I asked.

“We need to know if there is a boat crossing the sea. If not, we are in big trouble. I don’t want to have to walk back to Rydavas. I’m worried we won’t find a suitable airship for me to fly. Certainly not one as swift as my last.”

The rivers were filled with boats stopped at shops built along the water.

Maev explained that there was a high and low tide every day and that sometimes boats could pull right up to the shops.

Other times, the owners had to travel down to platforms that were currently under the water and out of sight.

Ollo stopped and tied the boat to a section of the river filled with market stalls. Legacies of all shapes and sizes mulled around, and the commotion made me dizzy after days alone in the rain.

Maev climbed out of the boat first, ignoring Ollo and me as she took in the street.

Ollo motioned for me to go next, and I stepped up onto the seat.

The boat tipped with my weight, and my foot slipped on the wet wood.

I fell backward, crashing against Ollo. His arms banded around my waist in an attempt to keep me from falling, but the boat rocked with the force, and he lost his balance, too, and fell back onto the seat behind us, pulling me with him.

He grunted when we landed with me awkwardly on his lap.

I froze, embarrassed. “I’m so sorry.”

His laughter vibrated against my back. The warmth of his body—his noticeably hard and well-defined body—reached me through my cloak, and my stomach dipped. I should not have noticed those things.

“Don’t apologize,” he said next to my ear. “I’m actually relieved.”

“Relieved? That I’m squishing you?” I spun to face him, which was a mistake, as his face was now entirely too close to mine.

I could make out each dark blue lash, framing his curious stare.

How he looked at me carried none of the irritation it had on our journey here, and I wondered if all those looks before were more than just observations.

And for a moment, I pictured him , and imagined him looking at me like that. Then I realized I was still sitting on Ollo’s lap, and I scrambled off.

He leaned back on the bench, sliding an arm over the edge, and gave me a new kind of smile I had not seen yet.

I think he was laughing at me. “You’re the embodiment of the gods.

You possess their power. They say you can’t even look upon the gods without trembling.

I conjured the image of a tall, muscled warrior when we embarked on our search for the Ikhor.

You are a surprise. I am relieved because you feel like a flesh and blood woman.

Warm …” His lips curved into a full-blown smile, then faltered.

I blinked. “Are you flirting with me?”

He coughed. ”No. I mean—Yes, I was. My apologies.”

“You’re bold.”

My balance threatened to send me back down onto his lap, and Ollo stood, holding my elbow to steady me. “Nothing is gained in life if we are not a little bold, Saviour.” He gave me an awkward yet polite smile and helped me out of the boat.

I stepped nervously onto a wide dirt path.

Maev gave me a curious look, perhaps wondering why I was suddenly scarlet faced.

Ollo set me off kilter with how he spoke so brazenly.

I had thought the Guards had taken me out of my shell, showing me a new world and how to be brave. Ollo was … a different kind of brave.

I didn’t meet his eye when he stepped onto the path next to me. Instead, I took in the shops along the side of the shoreline. Everything was basking in a green glow from the leaves overhead. The lights floating out from shop windows twinkled down the pathways. The city was inviting.

I spun in a circle, taking it all in, pausing when I caught pieces of a conversation.

“How long must we stay in the city?”