Page 20

Chapter

Seventeen

Liv

We all have walls we build to keep ourselves safe.

It matters how close you stand to yours and how hard it is to cross.

Stepping over it is tough. Jumping usually results in injury.

The best way to cross those boundaries is to fill yourself with determination and plow right through.

Sometimes, the best fuel is fire. And anger makes you burn hot.

I’ve accomplished a lot with my anger. I survived harsh climates, starvation, ridicule and death.

Nuo, if you ever read this, know that I thought it was how you would choose to survive, too. Forgive me.

W e slipped out of the market unnoticed. Kazhi had told us what to do, and it was a brilliant plan. After a quick discussion, she chased after the other Guards to lead them away from the landing site where we were headed.

“She’s not a Rydavian. She’s a Guardian and not to be trusted,” Maev huffed, her pace too fast to keep up with. She was insulted, perhaps hoping for an ally on this side of the world.

“Which way is the landing site?” I said, pulling my hood tight around my head, and Maev did the same with hers.

The twins were taking me back to Rydavas to be used by their armies. Maev had known and acted like she was interested in ending the cycle.

The Guards would kill me, and so would the world if I tried to make it on my own.

What better choice did I have than to follow?

“We are at the central market. We have a bit of a walk.”

We hurried over bridges and along boardwalks, making our way past the shops in the inner city. People were packing up their wares and making their way home. The streets were emptying for fear the rumours of the Ikhor were true.

I passed another poster of my screaming face and I flipped it off.

One foot in front of the other , I told myself.

Breathe. Hold.

Six weeks! The fog crept in, and I lost track of the trees we passed. Was it the reason I had missing time? Was the fog the Ikhor, or was it of my making?

I reached inside myself, searching for its presence.

How did one find another sentient being inside themselves?

I felt the magic and how much I wished I could use it to ease its hold on me, but no voice was attached.

Many things were lingering under my skin, and I worried about what I would see if I looked too long.

The very thing that drew in the Ikhor was hate in one’s heart and a strong body that could survive its possession.

Yet, it was in one of my weakest moments that the magic formed.

“Do you hear that?” Maev snapped me back to reality.

Distant shouting drowned my thoughts out. “I do, and it’s coming from the direction of the landing site.” With strength I didn’t have, I picked up my pace to follow her.

She pushed through the growing crowd that was heading in the opposite direction from us. The citizens were whispering of Aethars, and Maev turned to me, mouthing at me to stick close.

“Is there a horde here?” I asked as we crested over a small hill built over a root.

“There may be. Many groups of the Southlanders came over when the rumours of the Ikhor’s waking began to spread. Ollo got very little intel as we travelled, but he did discover that their numbers have increased.”

“And apparently, even going so far as to attack the Aspis. Will they cause trouble for us? You are an Aethar your—” I sent her an apologetic look. “Nevermind. Sorry. A Rydavian. Maybe they won’t be an issue.”

Her mouth pressed into a thin line. “They don’t have allegiance to anyone but their clans. Even the clans kill each other when they aren’t unified in taking down the Guardians. They will kill me, only to get to you. They will offer you anything they can to get you to follow them home.”

“Why would they want me?”

“Why everyone wants you. They either want you dead or to use you for your powers and kill the Veydian people.”

Veydian people . I hadn’t heard them referred to as that before.

The citizens shoved me, and the Aethar’s presence corrupted the beauty of the city, just as everything else had been.

It reminded me of what had happened in Bellum—I ran into danger and caused trouble for the Guards.

It had been different then. Then I had been a liability, and had the Guards to protect me.

The rivers widened, and the giant trees spaced out, creating wider roads and larger shops.

It became easier to run through the people, and judging by their expressions, we were getting closer to the Aethar.

The paths were damp from the little rain that broke through the trees high above.

Thunder crashed, muffled by the dense leaves.

Trees parted to reveal the sky as we crossed over a large bridge.

Rain misted my face, and I blinked away the moisture.

I stopped at the top of the bridge, spotting the docks ahead. Boats of all sizes filled the wooden boardwalks along the rivers. The port was huge, and the river flowed out of the city into a vast open countryside.

The landing site could house ten, if not more, airships the size of Falizha’s. Several were already there, including the golden bitch’s ship.

Panic tore through me as I grabbed Maev’s arm and stopped her.

“What are you doing? Ollo will be down there.” She pulled out of my grasp. “This was the plan.” Her face was flushed, and she was out of breath.

I only shook my head, unable to move on.

I wasn’t afraid to face Falizha, who had plans to weed out the undesirable Legacies that weren’t golden like her. I wasn’t afraid of the horde of Aethar that surrounded the site, blocking our path. I was afraid of seeing my friend—the one who promised to kill me.

“Liv, you’ve gone pale. Wha?—”

“I-KHOR!” The voice tore through the crowd, drowning out all others.

Maev and I turned to find Nuo running up the side of the river on the opposite side of the landing site. He was gaining on us quickly.

I spun back to the site, and not far from Falizha’s ship, Ollo’s flowing moon-bright hair caught my eye. “There.” I pointed him out to Maev. “Go get Ollo and fill him in. I will race there in a moment.”

“What will you do? You aren’t trying to stay with them, are you? They’re going to kill you or at least try to stop you. We need you.”

“I am going to stop them. We are getting away from here. I promise I’m not running again.”

“I—”

“Go. I can do this.” I said for myself more than for her.

Would I be willing to hurt my old friends for my new ones?

Maev nodded, looking apprehensively at the approaching Guards. “You’ll have to fight them all. You might have to hurt them, Liv.”

Bastane and Falizha had caught up, and Kazhi appeared from thin air. The Guards were closing in on the bridge.

Maev gave me one last worried look and pushed away, running toward the airship docks. She reached her brother just as the Guards reached the bridge.

Nuo was first to arrive as he skidded to a halt at the bottom of the bridge, sending dust flying past him.

I stood tall, chin raised, putting on a show of bravery.

He sneered up at me, chest rising and falling so fast, and it ached to see him with his frame diminished compared to the man he had been only six weeks ago.

I grew up in a forest, clouded and grey. Meeting Nuo had split the skies. He had shown me how vibrant a person could be and how exciting life was.

But Nuo, like me, had given up. The fog had reached him, too.

I had faced dark times when my mother died.

I had cried for weeks and nearly starved.

It had taken something strong to wake me out of that hell—something cold and unrelenting—my sister.

Rebeka had urged me to smarten up, stating Mother’s death would be for nothing if I let myself go.

So I had snapped out of it. I had toughened up.

Anger and the fear of death had always motivated me to stay strong, and I needed to do that now for Nuo. He and I needed to survive. I knew my faults, and I had already promised myself I would be stronger, and goddammit, so would he.

I searched inside myself, feeling for that pain—the Ikhor’s magic. It was a powerful force, a whirling torrent in my chest. My sorrow had flooded the plains of Veydes, and now, I would use it to stop the Guards from crossing the bridge.

The magic of the Ikhor always rushed to the surface like a current when I thought of him .

Yes, the magic hummed in response as I pictured his iridescent eyes and wolfish grin.

The sharp ripping in my chest travelled to my shoulders, stiffening my back and tingling the tips of my fingers. The water below the bridge responded as the river felt my sorrow and reached up to offer its aid.

It was like the world slowed so I could see it all unfold—so I could control the outcome. The Guards raised their weapons at a snail’s pace. Shock lined their faces, seeing my power.

The water floated above the bridge as I turned my palms toward the sky.

Screeches that sounded like they dragged over gravel filled the city—Danuli tree lizards crying out.

Was it the magic? Could they feel the power of the Ikhor coming alive?

“The Ikhor wields more than fire.” Falizha’s voice resonated through the air, low and echoed.

“The rains. It was causing this flood. Not the gods.” Bastane’s words were sluggish, each syllable lingering.

Nuo’s mouth opened slowly on a roar.

When I was in control of it all, I raised my hands in the air before me—the water knew what I needed.

I was powerful—the Ikhor’s magic responded with vigour, needing to be let loose. The sensation was alleviating as much as it was terrifying.

As the Guards surged forward to attack, a deluge soared toward them, slamming into them as the rush of water also fell upon me.

I choked, blinking past the ache in my limbs.

Maybe I wasn’t in full control.

The flowing rapid knocked the Guards back, and their limp forms rode the wave until they crashed into a large root.

The water crashed on the pathway, where it pooled and retreated to the river.