She remembered their mother telling them when they were children that, no matter what, they must always stick together. Nothing could come between the four of them.
Born together, they were united. She was forever reminding them that they were each different and possessed unique personalities they should be proud of. And as Naeve sat there with her sisters, she knew she had to tell them what she’d seen.
“This is going to sound really strange,” she started out softly. “That man, the one who was just talking? Well, he showed me something. Something I can’t explain.”
“What?” Audra asked as she squeezed her fingers tighter around Naeve’s. “What did he show you?”
Naeve swallowed, and her eyes nervously roved over them as she realized how insane her next words were going to sound. “He showed me our mother.”
“What?” Siobhan asked. “You mean she’s here?”
“No. No,” she answered, quickly shaking her head.
“Then what do you mean he showed you—”
“In his palm,” she interrupted before she lost her nerve. “There is this light and it glows, and he showed me our mother back when she was young and pregnant with us.”
“Oookay. Do you know how crazy you sound? I think you hit your head harder than the rest of us.”
“No,” Naeve insisted, staring across at Siobhan. “I know what I saw, what he did.”
“What he did? Are you listening to yourself?” Siobhan asked as if she’d totally lost her mind.
Hell, maybe I have.
“Who is this guy, anyway?”
“His name is Bastian. He reads minds and does…does this magic stuff with his hands and the light.”
“I don’t want to sound mean, Naeve. But do you really believe that?” Fiona finally asked.
“Yes, I do. I know I sound crazy—trust me. But he can show you. Just like he showed me.”
She let go of their hands and called out Bastian’s name, and as they sat there and waited in silence, Naeve could feel her sister’s eyes on her as absolutely nothing happened.
* * *
Bastian took full form back up in the shadows of the Sequoia. He had to contact his father’s guards and let them know he’d secured the women. He should have really done it when he’d first arrived, but having never left the castle before—or even his chambers for that matter—he’d been curious.
So he’d taken a few minutes—maybe more than a few—and spoken to Naeve, the first of the four to wake.
What exactly does the Empress want with them? From what Bastian understood, it couldn’t be anything good—not when it came to Seraphine.
Marked by the Guardians, like himself, he and Seraphine were two of the very few sensualeers known to the public. Their kind possessed certain abilities that the people of Arcania had been taught to fear ever since the legendary battle with Caitlin. That apprehension was one of the many reasons he’d been locked away since he was born and others like him remained in hiding.
She, however, had been crowned Empress and was known as ‘the ruler without mercy.’ She governed with brute intimidation to get what she wanted, solidifying the fears of the people when it came to their kind. Tyrannical and unloving, she had made sure that the people of Arcania shared her desolate fate—nothing was sacred.
Bastian settled into the crook of the tree and closed his eyes as he searched out the link he was seeking. The art of communication through one’s mind was one of the first skills he’d perfected. He’d forged many different paths over the years. Some out of boredom and some without permission, but he’d never had to establish one with someone so antagonistic towards the idea—someone like his father’s head guard.
The man’s mind was a steel trap. One which he never unlocked. In other words, Bastian had to knock and wait for the door to be answered. So when he sent out the link, he was surprised to feel the almost instant connection.
Knowing of Ry’Ker’s stern reputation and his intense dislike of what Seraphine was, Bastian assumed that he was regarded with the same disgust, so he didn’t bother with pleasantries.
We’re in the Taise Forest. On the East bank of the Hei Falls.
There was no acknowledgment, just a slight change of direction in the soldier's thoughts and true to his nature, Bastian couldn’t help but latch on to it.
Kai knows where it is.
I don’t believe I asked. The clipped response was cold and direct, and it left Bastian annoyed enough to fire back.
Then stop thinking about it so hard. Your brother will lead you here. Make sure you follow.
The second he thought it, Bastian felt the guard sever the connection.
* * *
“So let me get this straight.” Siobhan started out slowly, as if she were talking to a deranged person. “This man, this stranger, who brought us here…is here to help us? And as an added bonus, he can do magic tricks? Really, Naeve?”
When Siobhan said it like that, Naeve thought she sounded batshit crazy too.
“I can't explain it. He said that we were brought here by…” She hesitated over the word ‘Empress’ because it seemed so, well, weird. “By someone, but he didn’t give a name. And he says we are part of an Imperial Family. Oh…and that Aunt Rhiannon, get this, has been missing for years and so has Mom.”
Siobhan finally stood and started to pace. “I'm sorry, Naeve. But you sound demented.”
“Yes, she does. Doesn't she? But she is telling you the truth.”
Spinning on her toes, Siobhan turned to face where Bastian now stood with a long, thick branch that was lit at one end.
As the rest of them stood, Naeve noticed he was dressed the same as before in those lightweight pants and nothing more. He moved to take a step closer, and Siobhan backed away.
“Don't come any closer to us.”
“Or what?” he asked.
Naeve winced as she thought of all the things Siobhan would be thinking—case in point.
“I don't think kicking my ass would be beneficial at this point in time. Although I'd like to see what that entails.”
Siobhan bravely took a step forward, but Naeve grabbed her arm.
“Stop it,” she murmured. “I believe him.”
Siobhan glared at her and then moved her eyes to her other mute sisters.
“They are starting to believe me also,” Bastian interjected. “Just so there’s no reason to speculate.”
Siobhan’s shoulder’s stiffened, and she turned back to face the stranger across from her. “Okay, then. Since you’re the strapping young man here to save us, why don’t you lead the way out of here?”
Bastian raised the branch he was holding and then dug it into the dirt below his feet so it stood upright. “Because you have it all wrong, cousin. I’m not here to save you.”
As the final word left his mouth, he raised his hand in an arcing sweep across the space before them. An intricate mirage appeared, the fire from the branch forming the shapes and shadows of people and villages; it was a map of a world they'd never known existed. Turning back to face them, he said fiercely, “But my father seems to think that you are all here to save them.”
Kai stood in the archway of the Hall and watched his men move around in silence. A little over an hour ago, he’d given the order that they were moving out at nightfall.
Since then, Marcus had taken charge in gathering their weapons and having the food readied, while Ry’Ker had begrudgingly taken a seat in the far corner of the room.
It was odd to look at a man and know that you were of the same blood yet not be able to recognize anything about him. That was how Kai felt as he looked at the stranger in the corner.
Ry’Ker had removed his helmet and body armor, and even then, the man who came into view was no one he remembered. His head was shaved, as were all the Imperial Guards, and his face was grave. The laughing boy he’d grown up with was long gone, but then again, he was not the same either. Not by any means.
He walked into the roo
m and looked over the weapons laid out on the table. Axes, crossbows, and swords were all strewn across the large expanse, and as he ran his fingertips along the edge of the sturdy bench, he came to the final piece of weaponry—his favorite by choice.
The arrow and longbow.
Almost as tall as he was, this particular bow he’d crafted with his own two hands. Just as he had with the arrows, which sat neatly beside the quiver he’d modified to strap to his back.
He picked one of them up and continued over to where Ry’Ker was seated. After running his fingers along the smooth wood of the shaft, he stopped in front of his brother and pressed his fingertip against the sharp head.
“Have you heard anything on the location of the women?”
RyKer’s eyes found his as he answered, “Yes. Just now.”
“Si’Bastian, I presume?”
His brother gave him a suspicious look and asked, “How would you know it was him?”
Kai felt his lip curl at the side and merely shrugged. “I grew up at L’Mere just like you. Or have you forgotten, brother?”
Ry’Ker stood from the chair he’d been keeping warm and fumed at him. “Of course I haven’t forgotten. I was merely unaware that you’d made such close friends with the resident sensualeer.” His voice grated over the final word as he moved to stand toe-to-toe with him. “In fact, I’m surprised you even remember how to be civil enough to have friends.”
Kai took a step back and slid the arrow between his thumb and forefinger before dropping it down to his side. Slowly, he ran his eyes over the guard standing before him then returned to the table to place the arrow back down next to the others.
“Believe what you want, brother. But be careful who you choose to follow with those lofty expectations of yours.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
Looking over his shoulder, he pinned Ry’Ker with a steely look. “Betrayal comes in many shapes and forms. Be sure you aren’t so quick to pardon some while condemning others.”
Finished with the conversation, he walked towards the door, ready to go and get suited up.
* * *
Naeve was the first to step forward and examine the map that seemed to be alive in front of them.
“How are you doing that?” she wondered aloud as she reached out to touch the images on the stone.
But before Bastian could answer, Siobhan interrupted, “What is it?”
Bastian straightened and turned to face her sisters. “This…is Arcania.”
“Yeah, I figured that would be your answer.” Siobhan walked closer and prodded, “Want to give a little more info, Magic Man?”
Bastian didn’t respond to her heckling, but he did give her an answer to her question. “It’s a map of the castles, lakes, and villages that are within the borders of our world.”
Naeve continued to trace a finger over the image of a tall tower that was attached to an old, crumbling castle. It was simply mesmerizing the way the shadows and shapes moved under her finger as if it were alive. At the northernmost point of the map were the words ‘Castle Claremont.’
“Where do you live?” she asked.
Bastian turned to see where she was looking and placed his fingers over the lavish castle towards the center of the map, the one that was surrounded by several lakes and a forest that looked so unwelcoming that she’d avoided it even though it was only an image.
“Castle L’Mere is my home.”
They all stood there, silently studying the elaborate etching in the center of the map.
“Why is it so dark?” Fiona asked, always curious. “The forest surrounding the castle?”
Bastian glanced over to her and then back to the map. “Our land is infected. All of that darkness is the dead.”
Naeve felt a chill race up her spine, and before she could ask, it seemed Siobhan was reading her mind.
“Why?”
“That story is long, and it is not mine to tell. It’s more important that we get you safely to L’Mere.”
Siobhan crossed her arms and peered down the line they’d formed to where Bastian was standing beside the flickering torch. “‘We’ get you to safety? Who is ‘we’? Or are you going to tell me you can make people magically appear too?”
Bastian narrowed his eyes on her but still answered her question as patiently as the others. “No. I cannot make people appear. I can and did, however, contact some men who will lead us back to L’Mere.”
Audra tugged on Naeve’s arm, and she turned to her wide-eyed and, up until now, silent sister.
“I don’t know about this,” she whispered. “Something doesn’t feel right to me.”
Naeve thought that was probably the understatement of the year, but before she could pull Siobhan over to discuss it, she was asking her next question.
“Who’s coming here?”
They all turned to face where Siobhan was standing with her hands on her hips and her foot tapping on the ground.
“The Imperial Guard is coming,” Bastian stated, and then he paused for a moment and seemed to think over his next words carefully. “As are the men of Claremont.”
Siobhan started to laugh then, as if she found that answer highly amusing. “So we’re supposed to believe that you’re some kind of magical being, yet we need two armies to get us out of here? In that case, you might as well go and let us wait for the real men to show up. Where the hell did you bring us, anyway?”
For the first time since Naeve had met him, she saw a foreboding expression cross Bastian’s face as his eyes took on a look that made her think she needed to replace the word ‘magical’ with ‘terrifying.’
It seemed as if Bastian’s patience had finally worn out.
He raised both of his hands palms up, and then she heard in her head, You are and always have been in the center of the Taise Forest. You have merely been under a glamour shield. But now…you are not.
Then he turned his hands, pushed them down, and disappeared.
In the blink of an eye, the four of them were left standing in the exact same place they’d originally woken in.
The forest darkened by death.
* * *
The sound of the bells in the High Tower indicated that it was time.
Kai made his way down from his chambers, dressed as his men were—in a black leather jerkin, matching pants, and heavy, black strider boots. He met Marcus at the outer gate, where he secured his quiver by a buckle across his chest and then took his bow and slung it over his shoulder.
With a quick flick of his wrist he pulled his hood up over his head and strode past his men to where his brother waited, suited up in the shiniest of armor. He stood out like a burning flame.
“Do you wish to blend into the shadows or attract trouble, brother?”
“To me, they have always been one and the same.”
“I thought the idea was to reach the women before the Empress. You look like a shiny plaything. Seraphine will spot you in an instant.”
Ry’Ker shoved the visor of his helmet up and gritted his teeth before he spat out, “And you look like the devil sent straight from Hell.”
“Maybe I do. But at least I’ll reside here in Hell longer than you dressed as you are.”
“Then what do you suggest? That the Commander’s head guard—”
“Yes?” He didn’t miss for a second the way Ry’Ker caught his words before he let them slip free.
“Nothing. Since you know the forest better than anyone else, what do you think would work?”
Kai glanced over him and then stated bluntly, “I’d ditch the outer armor. Buckle your sword and knives around your hauberk and lose the holier-than-thou attitude.”
Ry’Ker reached up with both hands and jerked his helmet from his head. “What’s my attitude got to do with what I’m wearing?”
Leaning down until they were nose to nose, Kai gave a menacing grin. “Not a single thing, but it’s getting on my last nerve.”
Seething, Ry’Ker raised a
n arm and clenched his fist. “If I were not under orders to be here—”
“But you are, aren’t you? Your leader, your land… It needs me, remember? And therefore,” he told him with a quick jab of his finger to the shiny chest plate, “so do you.”
Ry’Ker wisely took a step back and struggled to get ahold of himself. Kai had always admired that about him when they were kids. He would always react impulsively and let his emotions dictate his decisions. Whereas Ry’Ker was controlled in almost every aspect of his life—except for his temper when it was firmly provoked.
“How many men do you have?” Ry’Ker finally asked.
Straight back to business, Kai thought. And that’s what this is—business.
He would do the job. The one his brother had been sent to ask of him. And then he would exact payment—and he would get paid.
“I’m bringing just the ten behind me. You?”
“Twenty waiting five miles to the East of Claremont’s farthest border. If we head out now, we should reach them and then Hei Falls by tomorrow morning at the latest.”
Marcus made his way through the group of men waiting on them and handed over his leather belt, which held his sword and combat dagger.
“Thank you.”
With a slight nod, the man acknowledged quietly, “Of course, Sire.”
Kai fastened it around his waist and made sure the handle was within quick reach across his body. “Well?” he asked. “What are you waiting for, brother? Strip and belt up. Or do you wish to be an exposed whore to the hungry beast?”
When Ry’Ker snarled at him, he offered nothing more than a raised brow as he turned to address his men.
“Listen up. Just as I would advise on any mission, your first concern is that of yourself. You owe nothing to anybody. Once your safety is secured, assist as you are able. We’ll be meeting up with the Imperials just East of the outer border.”