I could only begin to imagine what everyone back home would think when we didn’t return home as promised. Police would get involved, missing persons cases would be filed, and our loved ones would endure untold heartache.
“As wonderful as your blossoming romance is, dear Brother, we have other things to attend to now that Riley is here,” Navan said, clearing his throat and finally managing to wipe the smirk off his face. “We thought we’d wait until you got back before we started discussing Orion,” he explained, turning to me.
I nodded, drawing in a breath. “Has anyone managed to gather any intel on the elixir?”
An awkward tension spread through the group.
“With all the plans for the alchemy lab being drawn up, and eyes on us all the time, we haven’t really had a chance to sneak out and do any Sherlocking,” Angie said apologetically, flashing a glance at Bashrik.
“It’ll be easier once the first floor starts to go in, but I think everyone was worried we’d run off while the foundations were being built,” he said. “Since we’re still here, and the foundations have been laid, the security around us should ease up.”
“I’ve been buried in books for a week, to no avail,” Lauren added. “I’ve been absorbing as much as I can about Vysanthean lore and alchemical compounds to see if there’s anything that can help us, but I haven’t come across anything to do with the elixir that we don’t already know. Not yet, anyway.”
“And with us in training all week, that leaves us with nothing.” Navan sighed.
“Well, actually, not nothing,” Bashrik returned, a thoughtful expression on his face. “There’s this alchemist who keeps bugging Angie and me about the status of the new alchemy lab and the proposed completion date. He’s pretty antsy to get back to his work—”
“And he makes Oscar the Grouch look like a pussycat,” Angie cut in, pulling a twisted, angry face that I presumed was meant to look like this mystery guy.
Bashrik frowned. “While I have no idea who ‘Oscar’ is, this particular alchemist is the very definition of a grouch. Yorrek is definitely not the kind of guy you want to have pestering you all the time. However, he could be pretty useful if we could capture him and interrogate him.”
Angie nodded. “He lives in a village nearby, though he comes into the city to bother us pretty much every day. If we can intercept him on his way into the city, we could try to squeeze some info out of him.”
“It’ll be risky, but since he doesn’t live in the city, and nobody likes him, nobody will miss him,” Bashrik continued, glancing at Angie for confirmation. “He doesn’t really have any friends as far as I can tell, and keeps to himself—when he’s not bothering us, that is. And, with the alchemists mostly out of action until the new lab is built, he could disappear for days and no one would know or care.”
Angie grinned. “I think we’d be doing them a favor.”
“And what about putting him back once we’re done with him?” I asked, seeing several holes in this risky scheme. “Surely he’d tell everyone what happened to him, but then, we can’t lock him away forever, or… kill him. Somebody would notice, eventually.”
“We can always use a vial of Elysium to wipe his memory once we’re done,” Navan replied. “I’m sure there’s some lying around the palace interrogation rooms or medical wing that we could get our hands on. This Yorrek guy probably has the ingredients in his house, if he’s the kind of alchemist I think he might be—the kind who takes his work home with him, if he doesn’t like to be around other people. My concern is that he won’t give up any useful information in the first place. He has no reason to.”
I hadn’t thought about that. If Yorrek was as obsessed with his job as Bashrik made him seem, there was no way he’d give up his secrets. He would never put his position as a royal alchemist at risk, even under duress.
“We can always create a serum from the poroporo fruit,” Lauren said suddenly, as though a bulb had just flashed in her mind. “It’s a fruit I’ve been reading about in the library. It’s indigenous to Northern Vysanthe. It has hypnotic qualities when ingested or injected and puts a person in a state of extreme susceptibility. It would give us a chance to ask questions and receive honest answers… if we can administer the right amount.”
“Never heard of it,” Navan and Bashrik chorused.
“Of course you haven’t! You’re southerners,” Angie remarked. “Go on, Lauren. Ignore these dumbos.”
Lauren smiled. “Apparently, they had a few problems with it a couple of decades ago. People were using it recreationally, and they used so much of it that they nearly harvested it into extinction, so it doesn’t really grow in many places anymore. One book said it still grows in some areas of Northern Vysanthe, though I can’t remember whereabouts off the top of my head… I’ll double check and get back to you as soon as I can.”
“Riley and I can track it down if you pass us the information,” Navan said. “We have a day off a week, where the rest of you don’t. If we tell the queen we want to leave the city on a romantic outing, I’m sure she’d let us. Especially since she seems to be in a romantic mood herself.” Navan’s smirk returned as he gave Bashrik a pat on the back.
His brother scowled; he had evidently hoped the arakar heart incident had been forgotten. “No matter how we get around her security, we’ll need to work quickly,” he said tersely. “We’re running out of time.”
I swallowed, my heart sinking like a stone at the reminder. There were only three weeks remaining until Orion carried out his threat to kill my parents. Now, more than ever before, the pressure was on.
This was a deadline we couldn’t afford to miss.
Chapter Five
I hit the deck, my lungs burning as the impact forced the air out of me. Already, every single muscle in my body hurt and ached beyond anything I’d ever felt before, but it didn’t matter. I had to get up. I had to keep fighting.
Grimacing, I dug my fingers into the floor and pulled myself back up, raising my fists to my face as I prepared for another onslaught. I had been paired with a coldblood female named Iskra who seemed hellbent on knocking me to the ground every five seconds. Even so, I was determined not to stay down. There was no way I’d give any coldblood the satisfaction of seeing me surrender.
My legs were shaking as I faced Iskra once more. Her face was a mask of fury as I squared up to her. With each defiance of her blows, I knew I was annoying her more, getting under her skin. It was exactly as I’d planned. She would slip up once frustration set in.
With her teeth bared, she lunged for me, offering me the opportunity I’d been waiting for. It was a clumsy assault, her muscles not quite braced for my sudden burst in speed. Sidestepping swiftly, I stuck out my foot, and she stumbled over it. With her knocked off balance, I brought my elbow down hard against the softest part of her shoulder, adding the last bit of weight I needed to send her sprawling forward on the ground. She fell with a grunt, her eyes flashing back at me as I knelt against the small of her back, pinning her there for a moment as she flailed, trying to swipe at me. I knew it wouldn’t last, considering her superior strength, but I was happy to have floored her, even once.
I sprang back as she twisted around, her eyes burning with hatred. All around me, the other recruits were watching, amused expressions on their faces, as Iskra leapt back to her feet. It would’ve been embarrassing for any of them to have been knocked down by an inferior species, and I could see they were glad someone else had taken the fall.
“You’ll pay for that, leech!” she snarled, the muscle rippling beneath her ashen skin. This time, I knew she’d be better prepared when she came for me. In truth, I wasn’t sure how many more knocks I could take before I was forced to stay on the ground. I was already feeling pretty broken, and we were only halfway through the day’s training, with sixty circuits of the brutal assault course to look forward to after lunch.
“Your embarrassment will last longer than my bruises,” I taunted, lifting my fists again. I wa
s getting better at preempting the movements of my opponent, though it took each beating to learn the motion she was going to use next, and my mind was starting to get foggy with all the blows I’d taken to the head.
Before Iskra could spring at me again, a voice cut through the dull acoustics of the training room. “Take five minutes!” Pandora shouted, bringing the training to a sudden halt. I hadn’t seen her watching the proceedings, nor had I seen the figure who was descending the stairs to the observation room, walking a few steps behind Pandora.
The coldblood recruits bowed low as Queen Brisha swept through the group, then dispersed to fetch water, gathering in smaller clusters so they could discuss the events of the morning. A few looked over in my direction, but I ignored them. The queen came to a stop beside my training square. I followed Iskra’s lead, dipping low from the waist as the queen waved her hand, dismissing my opponent.
“Very impressive, Riley,” she remarked with a smile.
“I didn’t realize you were watching, Your Highness,” I replied politely, trying not to grimace against the throbbing pain in my elbow, where I was pretty sure I’d cracked something.
She nodded. “I occasionally enjoy observing my new recruits unawares. I feel as though trainees try too hard if they know they are being watched.”
“I might have tried a little harder if I had known, Your Highness,” I joked, wiping my brow with a towel I’d left to one side.
“Nonsense, you seem to be doing marvelously!” she said. “Although, I haven’t seen you use your wings, even though other trainees are attempting aerial combat. Have you tried out your gift yet?” A curious flicker of emotion glittered in her silver eyes as she awaited my answer. I felt as though I was letting down an aunt whose present I had pretended to like.
“I have taken a few sips, Your Highness, but nothing seemed to happen. Maybe it just doesn’t work on me,” I replied, hoping she couldn’t see through my lies. In all honesty, the vials of wing serum had worried me so much in the end that I had simply chosen to ignore them. Navan’s nerves had gotten to me. I didn’t know how it might affect me, given that it was still in a very experimental phase of production, and, after my last struggle with Vysanthean potions, I didn’t feel like risking my health on it unless I could be more hopeful about the outcome.
“A few sips?” The queen narrowed her eyes at me.
I nodded, though I couldn’t meet her gaze.
“Impossible, Riley. A few sips and you would have wings as strong and wide as anyone in this training room. Why are you lying to me? Do you know the punishment for lying to your queen?” she asked, though her tone didn’t seem angry. It was something closer to disappointed. It didn’t take a genius to see that she was offended by my rejection of her gift, just as Bashrik had warned she would be.
“I’m sorry, Your Highness. I didn’t mean to lie to you. It’s just that I’m… Well, I’m embarrassed,” I replied, thinking quickly. “I’m embarrassed because I’m worried I won’t be any good. I’m nervous about how difficult it will be to learn to fly.”
For a moment, Queen Brisha said nothing, her face a blank mask. Then, a burst of laughter erupted from her throat. I was off the hook. I didn’t know how, but I was.
“Have you not offered to teach your lover, Navan?” she chided, gesturing toward Navan, who had been standing not far from my training square. “You surprise me. I thought you would have been eager to teach your partner how to be more like one of us!” She smiled coyly, making me wonder if she was thinking about Bashrik.
Meanwhile, I found myself looking around the training room, hoping nobody had overheard Brisha revealing our relationship in such a carefree, open manner. I was pretty sure everyone already suspected by now, but I didn’t want to give them any more ammunition than they already had against me.
“I would have offered had she told me she’d received such a gift, Your Highness,” he replied coolly, snaking his arm around my waist. “How come you didn’t say anything?” he asked, frowning down at me.
“I wanted it to be a surprise,” I said. “I was going to try to learn on my own, but then I got scared, and just… never got around to it.”
Navan smiled warmly, looking deep into my eyes. “Well, now I can teach you without you having to worry about dropping out of the sky. If you fall, I’ll be there to catch you,” he said in a low tone, stroking a strand of hair behind my ears. With every word, I wanted to burst out laughing, the whole thing feeling like something out of a cheesy rom-com. And yet, the queen seemed delighted by it, her eyes gleaming with the magic of romance.
“Love’s young dream, the pair of you,” she sighed, showing her approval. “Instead of continuing here, why don’t you head out to the training fields to try out your gift? I give you my permission to skip today’s scheduled sessions in favor of learning to fly.” She winked, ushering the pair of us out of the door, leaving no room for a refusal. I knew it wouldn’t go down well with the other trainees, but I found I just couldn’t bring myself to care anymore. They were going to hate me no matter what I did, so I might as well learn something useful in the process.
With me bundled up in my fur coat, we took the long hallway that led through the middle of the training center, going in the opposite direction of the entrance and not stopping until we reached the very end. It was a lengthy trek that ended in a vast hangar, with various ships stowed against the walls. They were practice vessels, for when the trainees reached that stage of their journey from recruit to full-fledged soldier. Beyond the hangar stood two large doors that opened onto vast, empty fields that were used for battle scenarios involving gunships and other armored vessels. Nobody was out there today, giving us the perfect opportunity to practice flying.
Without drawing attention to ourselves, we slipped out of a smaller door that was embedded in the larger one and headed into the bitter cold. It was a clear day, the sky a pale, almost lilac hue, the icy sun beating down upon the landscape. Barely a cloud spoiled the perfect calm above, though I could still smell the tang of ozone in the air that usually came before a storm. I kept forgetting that smell was always here on Vysanthe, whether it rained or not.
We paused in the center of the second field over, the brisk breeze restoring me after the tiring morning of training I’d endured. I already had a vial of wing serum in the pocket of my coat, stowed away there for safekeeping, while the other two were safely hidden away in the apartment. But the thought of it still made me nervous. What if it all went wrong?
“Are you sure you want to do this?” Navan asked as I lifted out the vial of serum.
I nodded stiffly. “She’ll be watching, and I don’t want to offend her any more than I already have.”
“I’ve got no idea how this is going to work, but you’ll have to take your coat off,” he muttered.
Dreading the sensation of the Vysanthean wind on my skin, I shuffled off the protective layer of the fur coat and cast it aside, instantly regretting it as I began to shiver. I ignored the cold as best I could and took the emerald stopper out of the vial, then lifted it to my lips. The metal of the bottle was cold against my skin, and a sour aroma rose up from within.
I allowed a few drops of the surprisingly thick liquid to trickle down the back of my throat. It was done before I had a chance to think too hard about it.
“So… nothing’s happening,” I said, tapping my shoulders to see if anything was growing.
“Give it a minute. I doubt it will be instantaneous,” Navan said encouragingly, though I could tell he was worried.
“How did you learn to fly?” I asked as I waited for the serum to kick in. I needed to do something to take my mind off what I’d just done.
He smiled. “My mother taught me when I was two. You start out with the basics, with lifting and falling and soaring techniques, then move on to sweeping and wing control. It’s all about currents and pockets of air, as well as the force you can create by flapping them together,” he explained. Normally, the image of Navan as a
flapping, bumbling two-year-old would have brought a smile to my lips, but right now, all I could focus on was the serum inside me. I still couldn’t feel anything.
And then, it started.
It began as a burning sensation in the pit of my stomach, searing shocks of electricity shooting through my nerve endings. I winced, trying to brace against it, but the pain was too intense. It rocketed through my body, taking hold of every sense and cell, until I could only feel the white-hot agony of it. Navan put his arms around me, and I gripped his shoulders, using him as an anchor to get through the wave of torture.
A moment later, the pain moved away from my limbs and settled beneath the hard edges of my scapula. A strange sensation followed, like something was pushing violently against my skin, trying to burst through. I thought of all the sci-fi horror movies I’d ever seen, and worried that something alien and disgusting was about to explode out of my skin. The idea made me feel queasy, forcing me to grip harder at Navan’s shoulders for fear of collapsing.
I felt something split and tear, like someone had sliced my back open with a razor blade. I screamed out in pain, squeezing my eyes shut against it. It hurt. It really hurt. I remembered the way Ronad had struggled through the loss of his wings, his brow feverish, his cries echoing through the Texan night, and realized how idiotic I’d been—I should have known it would hurt.
On the grass in front of me, I saw two strange shadows spread out to either side of me, but my eyes were too clouded by pained tears to see the silhouettes properly. There was a weight, too, that I wasn’t used to. Most surprisingly, however, was the fact I didn’t feel cold anymore. Whatever the serum had done, it had made me less vulnerable than before.
“Are they there?” I whispered as the pain subsided.
Navan nodded slowly, his eyes wide. “They’re there… and, whoa, it is super weird seeing you like this.”