Force the Truth, page 14
Pigeon leapt into the air, flapping her feathered wings and stretching them wide to obscure Lina beneath her. I’ve only got one shot at this, Lina thought. We’ve got to catch him unawares.
“Fifty!”
The counting stopped abruptly, and Lina hurried her motions. “Something’s coming!” Pigeon shouted from above her, pointing into the distance. Lina hurried to tuck the powder back in her pocket, then used her own wings to hover, her gaze following the direction in which Pigeon had gestured.
She flew closer to where the sorcerer had been, relieved to see him remaining on the other side of the ice as he had been, a seeming reflection. But in the hall of mirrors she’d built, even reflections had reflections, so infinite versions of the sorcerer appeared to be chasing each other along the icy walls.
She watched as he made his way in their direction, holding her breath until he came around the corner where the pink powder had been arranged in a perfect circle.
Rashon’s reflections stopped, seeming to gather around the powder to inspect it. Because he was on the other side of the wall, he’d yet to set foot in the ring.
Except his reflections had. And since he was a reflection, that meant he, too, had stepped into the ring’s reflection without actually setting foot in it. Her plan had worked.
“What happens now?” Pigeon asked breathily.
Rashon looked down as the powder around his reflection ignited. He roared, assuming he’d been tricked, and Lina hugged herself, waiting for him to vanish, to be transported to into the Wilds and captured by her sister’s forces.
She waited as the powder fizzed and popped, the empty ring igniting, throwing its reflection onto the infinite Rashons. This is it.
Any moment now.
The ring of fire suddenly went out, the pink powder consumed, but Rashon had gone nowhere. Stepping out of the ice, his reflection became solid. He kicked some snow at the burnt-out remnants of the ring and laughed. “That all you got?”
It didn’t work. Lina’s heart sank as fear battered at her. Their only hope had just been thwarted. And our opponent is just getting started.
Chapter Twenty
Pigeon’s expression was a mixture of confusion and concern. “What just happened?”
Lina frowned, biting back a curse of frustration. “We just lost, that’s what happened.” She scrambled for anything else that might stop the sorcerer, but her mind was a blank, so deep was her disappointment.
Rashon was staring up at them, his face amused, his arms crossed. “I’m becoming bored with the landscape. How about a change?” He snapped his fingers, and the world spun around them. Lina’s stomach spun with it, and she fought against a wave of nausea.
When the world righted itself, it was like nothing Lina had seen before. The geometry of the structures surrounding them was wrong. They seemed unfinished, bending off at strange angles. She discovered that her eyes wouldn’t follow the lines of the buildings properly, leaving her feeling off-kilter. Where in the Realm are we?
Pigeon let out a cry, drawing her attention. Lina saw that her wing was caught by the edge of a strange block made of obsidian bricks, floating in a burnt orange sky. “It’s stuck,” Pigeon said, attempting to dislodge the block.
Lina soared toward her, intent on helping her friend, when she saw several bricks heading in her direction. Dodging them, she was delayed in reaching Pigeon, and when she finally did, she was dismayed to see that the block had gobbled up most of her wing, growing in size as it went.
“Help me!” Pigeon called out, and Lina set her hands on the block, focusing her power on it, intending to dismantle it from the inside out. Her power seemed to slip off the volcanic glass surface. She tried, again and again, then felt a horrible pinch on one of her own wings.
Looking over her shoulder, she saw that two blocks had attached themselves to her. Anger filled her, and it sharpened her focus. She forced a chain reaction through the bricks, hoping to explode them apart. But the explosion that happened did the opposite. When the smoke cleared, obsidian now covered both Pigeon’s wings and most of her midsection. It continued to grow at an alarming rate.
Lina dropped suddenly, realizing that her wings were now encased as well. She hit the ground hard and struggled to stand. The bricks impeded her movement as they swallowed more and more of her body.
She looked up at the sky, the orange haze strangely sinister. She spotted a large pair of eyes lurking in the distance. A wet chuckle revealed a smiling mouth. It opened, revealing rows of needle-like teeth. A droplet of drool plummeted from its lips to land on Lina’s leg, burning into her like acid. She let out a cry just before the obsidian covered her mouth.
“Looks like it’s lights out, ladies,” the voice said, somehow both deeper and thicker than before. The horrible mouth laughed as the Eater of Worlds celebrated their demise.
She barely had a moment to lament her loss, the last thought in her head one of Braken and how much she’d miss the broody, moody velox.
“No!” The gaping maw in the sky let out a shout of disappointment. She blinked upward, the sinister voice echoing in her ears. “You nasty little fairies thought you could distract me enough to foil my plans? I’ve climbed to the highest echelon of Fae society, and I won’t be thrown off course by a couple pesky meddlers.”
The orange sky went black. “I’m playing the long game” was the last thing she heard before darkness reigned.
***
Lina’s eyes opened, her mind refusing to understand its surroundings for precious seconds. She was back in the sitting room, her hand in Pigeon’s, in the exact pose she’d been before the sorcerer whisked them off on their impromptu journey.
A scream rent the air, and she turned to find the Lady Linetta, her beautiful face pale, crying out in alarm. She let go of Pigeon’s hand when she saw Braken lying on the study floor, his clothing torn, his body bleeding from multiple wounds.
Forgetting everything else, she dropped to her knees and clutched at him, attempting to assess the damage. He still breathed, but barely, and she knew the nightmare creatures they’d been fighting had taken their pound of his flesh. Lina reached for the energy from her pairing with Pigeon, intent on somehow healing him, but there was nothing there. The link is broken!
“What in the seventeen hells is going on in here?” The booming voice belonged to Benne Cimmera, Linetta’s father. Lina looked up to see his him, puffed up with anger, intent on rooting out the interlopers.
A hand grabbed hers and she looked down to find Braken staring up at her. Eyes wide in astonishment, she patted at his clothing which was no longer torn. The blood had vanished, and his cheeks were pink and healthy again.
“They were stealing,” Rashon said, an evil smile on his face. “I woke up and caught them here red-handed.” The sorcerer pointed at Lina’s right hand. She looked over, startled to find herself holding a heavy velvet bag. She dropped it as if her hand had been scalded.
“That’s...that’s my jewelry bag,” Linetta said haltingly.
“You!” Lord Benne hollered, pointing at Lina. “I always knew you were trouble. Now you seek to disgrace our good name?” He snatched up the velvet bag and opened it, exposing a fortune in glittering gems.
“It’s not true!” Lina’s words were drowned out by a pounding on the front door a level below them. There were raised voices, throwing the big house into commotion. Braken pulled himself off the floor, lifting his rapier and pointing it in the sorcerer’s direction. The point touched Rashon’s neck, and the handsome off-worlder smiled.
Footsteps exploded onto the stairs while Benne bellowed at the velox to put his weapon down. Lina’s gaze flew to the doorway, ice flooding her veins when she saw who was at the head of the uniformed column that had burst into the Cimmera estate.
“Drop your weapon, soldier,” Torva the Heartless ordered, lifting a finger in Braken’s direction. Lina saw the velox stiffen, his muscles starting to tremble. He was fighting the spell the premier Kingsblade was attempting to control him with, but in the end, his rapier clattered to the floor.
Linetta let out a cry of relief and ran to the sorcerer’s side, making Lina cringe. “Are you hurt, my love?” she asked, fluttering around him like a concerned dove.
“Only my pride,” he answered, taking her hands and kissing the backs of them. “I’m only glad I was able to apprehend them before they escaped with your treasures.”
“Lord Benne,” Torva said with a cold smile. “You have my apologies for barging in on you like this,” she said politely, “but the level of magic we detected broadcasting from your residence alerted every Kingsblade in a hundred-mile radius. Assuming you were in danger, we’ve come to your aid.”
The old Fae nodded distractedly. “Good that you did, too. We’ve got a thief in our midst.”
“You’ve got much more than that on your hands,” Torva said, stepping forward and pinning her gaze on Lina. “I knew that you’d turn up again, involved in some treachery.” Her gaze flicked to Pigeon, surprise registering on her features. “You, however, are unexpected. I sent a contingent to your little farm, assuming you’d grown homesick and had run away.”
Pigeon stared at Torva, trembling. Lina knew her companion had a healthy fear of the powerful Kingsblade. Hoping to distract the ice-veined harpy, Lina spoke to her. “It is not as they say. We are not here to steal.”
“Then what are you here for, pray tell?” The redhead’s grin was both sharp and inquisitive.
Lina wasn’t sure how to respond. If she alerted the Kingsblade to their plan of taking down Rashon, she knew they would not be believed. Besides, an attempted murder confession would be received much worse than petty theft. Instead of answering, she shook her head.
“Back to your old games, I see.” Torva stepped closer, leaning in to sniff at Lina. “You can’t hide them now, though, can you? This room reeks of magic.”
Lifting her chin, Lina held her tongue. Torva arched a brow, then turned her attention to Pigeon. “It’s against regulations to be out of uniform,” she told her. “That means a punishment. But if you tell me what she’s been up to”—she jerked her chin in Lina’s direction—“I’m sure we can look past this infraction.”
Pigeon took a deep breath and held it, not giving Torva what she wanted. The Kingsblade’s eyes narrowed, and she lifted her hands, bending the fingers and moving them so they seemed to ripple in front of her. “I ask again: Why have you come here?”
Lina could feel the tendrils of energy tracing outward from Torva, something she’d not been able to detect before she’d learned to touch her own magic. She’s using her power to make Pigeon talk. Unfair.
“We’re here to trap him,” Pigeon said quickly, her gaze flicking to Rashon and back to Torva. “Our plan was to take him down for the good of the Realm.” She suddenly slammed her hands over her mouth, looking embarrassed. Tears filled her eyes. “I’m sorry, Lina.”
“Not your fault,” Lina replied, patting her shoulder.
Linetta let out a piteous cry, throwing herself into the sorcerer’s arms. He held her tighter, his expression forlorn. “I’m sorry, my darling wife. I know not what I’ve done to earn your daughter’s animosity.”
“Daughter?” Torva asked, her eyebrows raising. “This woman is your daughter? How is this possible?”
“She’s not her daughter,” Benne growled. “She’s a filthy leech that Linetta should never have brought home with her.”
“Lina is a foundling, milady,” Linetta said, bowing her head in shame. “I discovered her on the road near our southern estate when she was younger.”
“You were wise to keep her under wraps,” Torva said, her tone saying the opposite. “If she wandered out of the Wilds, there would have been consequences.” She looked at Lina with new eyes. “This also explains why you haven’t been tested for magic before. If no one knew you existed, how could we know to test you?”
Torva turned to Lord Benne, her words curt. “The foundling is a threat to the Realm. The king must know that you’ve harbored her in your home for years without reporting her.”
“Foolish girl,” the old Fae roared at his daughter. “If you’ve put a black mark next to our name in the king’s book...” He didn’t bother to finish his sentence, his scowl saying all he needed to say.
“You’re wrong,” Braken said, his tone steady. “She is trying to save the Realm. You have my word.”
“The word of a deserter. And the son of a deserter as well. Like father, like son, I suppose.” Torva dismissed him out of hand, turning her back on him.
Anger filled his features. The velox lunged for his rapier, then leapt forward, but his momentum was arrested mid-air. “Take him, too,” she said. “And watch out for the blonde one. She’s strong.”
Torva left the room, the black-clad officers she’d brought with her jumping into action. They plucked Braken from the air where Torva had frozen him, three of them marching him out of the room once the heartless one released her magical hold on him. He struggled to free himself, looking over his shoulder to Lina. She shook her head, then held up her hands as the Kingsblade surrounded her.
They’re taking us to the king, she told herself. He’s our best shot now, since we failed to trap Rashon when we had a chance.
They were marched through dark streets in the direction of the palace. “Please,” Pigeon said, catching up with Torva as she led them toward the towering golden gates of the king’s residence. “You’ve got to listen to us. That man back there, he’s an imposter!”
Torva didn’t bother to turn around. She snapped her fingers, and Pigeon’s lips sealed shut. The plump woman’s eyes went round, and she attempted to pry her lips open with her fingers, but they were stuck fast. All she could do was let out a high-pitched hum of distress.
Lina stared daggers into the back of Torva’s head, on the verge of using her own powers to knock the woman for a loop. “It’s okay,” she said instead to her friend, hoping to comfort her a little. “We’ll save our story for King Lyr. He’s the only one who can help us defeat Rashon now.”
“You’re going to get your wish, foundling,” Torva said without bothering to turn around. “You’re going to see the king, but if you were smart, you would wish that you were headed anywhere else but to his audience chamber. King Lyr does not suffer traitors.”
Then she shifted, looking back over her shoulder with a feral grin. “But traitors...oh, do they suffer.”
Lina swallowed against the fear that threatened to fill her throat with bile.
Chapter Twenty-One
Lina was a bit dazzled by the room they were led into. There was an elaborate glass dome that provided a view into the starry night overhead, and the floor below was a mosaic of clouds and airy blues, combining with the white walls to give the room an expansive feel. At the far end of the room was a dais, and on the dais was a massive throne woven from silver and gold and encrusted in several types of gems. It sat empty.
Their footsteps echoed as they were marched toward the dais and shoved to their knees in front of the throne. Torva dismissed the officers who’d accompanied them. “The king will take things from here.”
The moment she spoke the word ‘king,’ the throne was suddenly filled by the Fae King. His face was like a thunderstorm, and he glowered down on them. Torva waggled her fingers in Pigeon’s direction, and the plump woman let out a gasp, sucking down air now that her lips had been unsealed.
Lina stared up at the king, intimidated by not only his anger but his ethereal beauty. Although this was not the first time she’d crossed his path, she couldn’t help but appreciate how perfectly formed he was. His white-blond hair cascaded over broad shoulders, his deep blue eyes shining out of a perfectly symmetrical face.
Torva bowed deeply, then linked her arms behind her back. “These three were apprehended at the Cimmera residence just a few moments ago. No doubt you felt the power being wielded by—”
“Leave me,” he cut her off, nodding in Pigeon’s direction. “And take that one with you.”
Torva’s eyes widened. “Your Majesty, I—” Suddenly, her mouth was moving, but no words were coming out. The Kingsblade grabbed her throat, a panicked expression on her face. Lyr said nothing, glaring at her, so Torva grabbed Pigeon by the arm and pulled her up to her feet.
She started scurrying to the exit, Pigeon following behind, laughing. “Serves you right. Let’s see how you like it.”
When they were alone, the king stood, descending the dais to size them up. Braken was the first one to receive his attention. He bored it in a stoic fashion, his muscles rigid, his face blank. Lina wished she’d had the training he had in steeling his features. “You’re one of my soldiers, are you not?”
Braken nodded. “I am, sire.”
“And yet you take up with this rogue actor,” he said, gesturing toward Lina. “Your father was discharged from my service as well, is that correct?”
Lina could see Braken’s features stiffen. “It is, sire.”
Then it was her turn to squirm under his royal gaze. “My Kingsblade know you’ve been in the Wilds. They’ve also reported heightened activity in the forest just south of the city. I suspect there’s a contingent of wildlings stationed there right now.”
Her eyes widened. He knows about the wildlings. But why would he keep that knowledge a secret? His knowing expression told her that he was aware of everything she was thinking. “Please, you need to listen. The Realm is in danger. A sorcerer named—”
The king held a finger to his lips, and Lina stopped speaking. The room spun without warning, and she looked up at the glass dome where the stars were swirling overhead. And then there was no glass. The stars were shining brightly, pinpoints of light glowing down over the trees surrounding them.
Trees? Where in the hells are we?
“The Wilds,” Braken said, leaping to his feet and taking a defensive stance.
