Page 14

Chapter

Twelve

Liv

“Be brave, Liv, because no one else will be brave for you,” my mother used to say when teaching me to survive.

It wasn’t until recently I considered maybe she wasn’t as brave as she demanded I be.

Every time I asked her about my father, she stayed silent.

If the Guards taught me anything, it is that keeping secrets is a quiet betrayal.

M y head craned back—I almost wished that dark figure would fly overhead.

Breathe. Hold. Breathe.

I had burned people alive and flooded homes. What else would I do before it was over?

“The Ikhor will destroy families, burn the earth and cause nothing but destruction until it is taken down,” Kazhi had once said, “We plan to find it and destroy it. ”

I was proving them all right.

We walked over bridges and along boardwalks, passing the shops in the inner city. The sun was setting, creating shadows under the large leaves above, yet the city glowed under the canopy.

“Look, Olivia, all the lights in the shops up above!”

The trees glowed as if surrounded by lightning bugs. Magic-powered lanterns hung from homes in the sky, twinkling like ethereal stars under the trees.

We were at the apex of a bridge when a group of men caught my eye.

They strolled toward me, wearing flowing green and brown fabrics, similar to the gold monk from the temple of Day.

Their hair was thick, like vines hanging loose from a branch.

They were so tree like that they blended in with the surrounding roots, save for their dark, hickory stare, which faced forward.

They ignored the citizens around them as if they were of little importance.

Maev pulled me close, linking her arm with mine and whispering, “Monks of Ouras. They travel from the temple, which is a few days’ journey from here, hoping to recruit new followers.

They want servants, really. The temple worshippers are put to work tending the land.

Not that that’s a bad thing, only that the monks and the temple get all the reward. ”

A tingling sensation travelled down my back as they passed at the top of the bridge. These were pure-blooded monks from the temple of Mountain. They were direct descendants of the first children—rare bloodlines that carried magic and kept it a secret from everyone else.

The buzz and hum of their magic made me shiver.

The hum of magic—that was what I had heard before. I had forgotten what it felt like.

“Did you know true purebloods can sense magic in others?” I asked Maev quietly.

She turned to me, surprised. “I didn’t think those bloodlines still existed. You know of this?”

I nodded.

“Have you met any? Magic is said to have died out, no longer carried down through the bloodlines.”

I lowered my voice further. “They keep to themselves. But they can’t hide from everybody. A magic user can sense another magic user.”

“That’s a very useful skill to have. And terrifying. The magical bloodlines were targeted in the wars of the past.”

“Wouldn’t your tracker work like that, finding the magic in bloodlines?” I asked.

“It can locate the frequencies and vibrations of magic. But it’s not exact.”

“I don’t know what the first part meant, but you found yourself a more accurate tracker.” I tapped a finger on my temple. “I can sense who it’s coming from.”

“Who?” She inched closer, wondering who I sensed.

“The monks.”

While I had grown used to having a certain opinion of the pure-blooded legacies of Day, I didn’t know what to make of the legacies of Mountain.

They seemed suspicious of others around them, reminding me of villagers back home.

But unlike the villagers, they didn’t feel cruel.

Instead, I suspected they used their quiet fortitude as a shield.

I recalled Nuo’s map and remembered that the Temple of Ouras, the Mountain god, was to the east of the river city and in the Median as well.

The Temple of Day had been even farther south in the desert.

And, of course, nowhere on the map, Nuo’s or others, did it show the missing temples of Night and Sea.

The monks passed me with no trouble. They didn’t stop to inspect me as another magic user or scream at seeing the Ikhor. So they knew other magic users existed and kept it secret, too. Interesting.

“Let’s stop here for something to eat.” Maev pulled on Ollo’s cloak.

“We should keep moving, Mae.”

“We are hungry, aren’t we, Olivia?” Maev raised a brow at me, waiting.

“Very hungry,” I lied.

“Mmmhmm. You’ve had a real appetite, Saviour.

” Ollo lifted a hand to direct us onto the patio next to a river, with chairs and tables.

Lights hung from wide-brimmed umbrellas, creating a warm glow around the patrons.

With the afternoon fading to evening, the muted patio lights set me at ease as we found a table along the base of the tree the kitchen was built into.

They forced me into a bench seat, Maev sitting next to me.

I faced Ollo, who flicked his cloak to the side before he sat.

Behind him was the river, where the people walked back and forth.

A thin man wearing an apron approached our table, and my back went stiff. “What’ll it be for you?”

“Dinner, please, and three drinks,” Maev said with a smile.

The man smiled back. “It’ll be out real quick. Not many stopping by today with the commotion in town.”

“We’ve heard.” Ollo’s tone was clipped. “We will eat and be on our way.”

“No rush, good man. You folk must be from the Sea-leg Isles with that skin tone. I had a lady in here yesterday with the finest colour of blue I’ve seen on my patio. I’m a lover of the sea meself, though with my hooves and long tail, I find I sink more than swim.”

Maev’s face turned a funny shade of pink. It was strange to see on blue skin.

“We are from the north, not the Isles,” Ollo replied.

“Ah.” The waiter gave him a nod and headed to get our food.

Maev settled on the bench, watching people pass on the path.“It’s so strange to sit here and have everyone think we are one of them.” She kept her long hair hidden under her hood, but Ollo tore his off, settling back in his seat.

“It’s not like we fit their description of Aethar,” Ollo remarked in a low tone, relaxing in his seat and looking around. There were four Guardians at a table across the patio from us. They were drinking, talking amongst themselves, unaware of who and what sat so close.

I debated with the desire to get to know my enemy, fearing I would be swayed to see them as my friends. Because if they were my friends, that would make the Guards my enemies.

“What legacy are you, anyways?” It came out ruder than I intended, but I couldn’t be bothered to repeat myself for politeness.

Maev pursed her lips, but it was Ollo who answered, his smooth voice surprisingly calming. “We are legacies of Rem.” He showed no modesty when he looked me over, perhaps trying to see the Ikhor past the woman’s skin.

“No, really,” I said. “You must be children of Mountain.” The darker lines and dashes across their skin had to resemble some animal they had on their continent.

The waiter cut in then, dropping three glasses in front of us.

I sniffed it, worried it would be something strong, but it had a sweet smell.

I glanced up at the siblings, wondering if they drank that sour drink the Guards had given me before.

The drink that had come from the scarred Aethar’s sack.

I took a sip, realizing I was parched. When was the last time I had anything to drink?

I tipped my glass, drinking more than I should and coughing when it burned my throat. At least the flavour was smooth.

“We are Day-legs,” Maev said. “Are there really only the golden days in Veydes? I’d heard as much.”

I went still. “I thought they were only gold?”

“Ah. Well, that answers my question,” she huffed.

“We have been taught that our clan was regarded as lesser in Veydes,” Ollo said. “And part of the weeding out the Council has done over the years.”

“What do you mean?”

He rested an elbow on the table. “You’ll no doubt have been taught the Day-legs are made in the image of Rem.

That is incorrect. Our bloodlines are the temperaments of Day—we have the ability to survive harsh climates.

The golden ones are children of the Sun,” he told me.

“They’re impervious to the day’s heat and resemble, as you could guess, the sun.

My people are of Ice. We live best in cold weather.

I could walk naked as I was born in the blistering cold and feel at ease. ”

Ollo gave me a lopsided grin, and I realized I was staring.

I glanced away, studying the glass in my hands, condensation rolling down the sides. I didn’t want to picture him naked, but my mind was always overimaginative. Unfortunately for my warring emotions, it wasn’t an unpleasant image.

“The last are the children of wind—pure white skin, black as night eyes. They travel with the wind. One of them could stand in a storm the likes of which you, the Ikhor, could make, and it wouldn’t topple them over.

We all tolerate the elements of the day well, but our bloodlines determine which we are strongest against.”

My jaw dropped. I put a hand to my mouth and held in the dizzying realization. “Oh my god.” My words were muffled behind my palm.

“That’s a weird saying,” Ollo said, “There’s more than one god, you’re aware.”

“Yeah. I just realized—I think I know what Kazhi is.”

Ollo rested both elbows on the table. “The Guard?”

“You be talking of the Guards now?” The waiter appeared again, setting down our food and making the three of us sit up straight.

My mouth watered from the smell of a fresh meal. But at the same time, my stomach rolled. How could I enjoy food at a time like this? My old friends were out there hunting me, and I was sitting with my enemy, enjoying a hot meal. Fields were being flooded, and I was sipping a cold drink.

“We were just mentioning them,” Maev said, pulling her plate toward her.

The waiter rested a hand against the chair next to Ollo, throwing a towel over his shoulder. “Now, I haven’t seen it myself, but many o’my customers here been saying they saw the Aspis. They sayin’ it’s not like the tales.”

“What do you mean?” I asked, curious.

He nodded as he spoke. “They say it wanders in the sky, following the Guards. Tale says is the other ways around, ya see? Guards suppose ta follow the beast.”

Ollo cocked his head. “And what do you think it means?”

“That somethin’ fishy with the Ikhor. It be playing games this time around. You think?”

Ollo pretended to consider. “Could be. Is that what your customers think, too?”

“Customers been sayin’ something wrong with the Guards too.” The waiter glanced over his shoulder at the Guardians across the way. “Says they been fightin’. Says the big one abandoned. Only three of ‘em left.”

I clutched my glass, but it slipped in my grip, nearly tipping over.

Maev grabbed my arm, giving me a small smile, then she spoke to the waiter. “Likely, he didn’t abandon. I bet the Aspis and the Ikhor aren’t exactly what millennial old tales say they are.”

The waiter stood straight. “Now hear you me, miss. Don’t be saying such a thing round these parts. Danuli may be neutral, but we know the Ikhor is evil. Look what it’s done so far.”

“You’re right.” I ducked my head. “Thanks for the info. We will eat now.” The waiter didn’t seem to take offence to my tone and left the table.

“Why did they hide he was the Aspis?” I whispered, confused at what the waiter had revealed. They thought he had abandoned the Guards, his family.

“Not surprised.” Ollo cut into his meat.

It took me a moment to realize he meant how the people viewed the Ikhor.

“They will never put the Aspis in a bad light. They aren’t loyal to the Guardians, being in neutral territory, but the Aspis is their saviour.

” He set his knife down. “I’m yet hung up on the Guard being a secret Day-leg. ”

I pushed the veggies on my plate around, too nervous to take a bite. “She has white skin, covered with black Guardian tattoos, and her eyes are so dark they look black. They remind me of the eyes of a lizard.”

“Did you ever see her in a storm?”

A booming laugh made me jump. One of the Guardians had spilt a drink down their front.

I whispered, “More than that. I know she uses magic. She also hides her legacy from everyone.”

Maev inched closer. “The Guard uses magic?”

“Magic doesn’t exist in the bloodlines anymore.” Ollo gave me a stern look, his tone sharp.

Maev set her fork down, giving me a triumphant smile, knowing something her brother didn’t.

“That’s the magic user you knew, isn’t it?

” She asked me. When I confirmed she told her brother, “The Guard is a pureblood Day-leg. A descendant of the first children, no less. I didn’t think the first children existed anymore.

But Olivia has met them, can sense them even. ”

Ollo’s face lit with interest. “I haven’t met many from the wind clan. They stick to their mountains. But it would be understandable she hid her legacy in Veydes, where the golden Day-legs rule. Especially if she were indeed a first child.”

Kazhi would kill me if she discovered I spilled her secret. “Please keep that to yourself. I didn’t mean to tell you that.”

Ollo took a deep breath. “That I can promise. That woman unnerved me. I don’t want her to know I’m acquainted with her secret.”

“So the first children are rare in Aethar lands, too?”

Ollo’s face fell. “Rydavian lands. If you are to be a saviour to the people, address them accordingly. And to answer your question, yes, some yet think they are a myth. Me included.”

Ollo’s features were softened in the dim light of the patio, and his moon-bright hair flowed on a slight breeze. He reminded me of a shining knight in my mother’s stories. They were always handsome. They always saved the girl.

My heart clenched.

He was not the knight I yearned for.