Capture (24 page)

N
YKIN
COLLAPSED
against the large trunk of the nearest tree. The sun had long since disappeared, and they’d finally been forced to stop when it got too dark to travel safely. Ryneq had found a small clearing—not very big, but it afforded them a half-decent vantage point for keeping watch.

“I’m going to try and connect with Fimor.” Nykin closed his eyes, not bothering to wait for Ryneq to respond. Ryneq had already volunteered for first watch, so Nykin closed his eyes and settled back against the tree.

He felt the familiar rush of magic as it warmed the skin of his inner wrist and pulsed under the surface. The heat spread up through his arm and out over his whole body, and Nykin felt himself relax further.

“Fimor?”
He didn’t bother to speak the words aloud this time. Ryneq was too far away to hear without him raising his voice, and there was absolutely no point taking unnecessary risks.
“Are you there?”
The silence stretched out for long enough that Nykin began to worry, but eventually he heard Fimor’s gravelly voice in his head.

“Nykin.”

“Oh thank the Gods!”
Nykin sighed with relief.
“Are you okay, now?”

“Almost. I’m sorry I’ve been absent, Nykin, but I needed to heal fully before encountering Hatak and Seran.”

“You’ll be there tomorrow?”
Nykin hadn’t really expected Fimor to be there since he’d be without a rider.

Fimor huffed in annoyance, and Nykin grinned as he pictured the expression on Fimor’s face.
“Of course I’ll be there. You will be in great danger, Nykin, and this time I can do something about it. Where else would I be?”

Nykin suddenly realized just how much he missed his dragon as the words wrapped around him and tugged at something deep inside. Dragons were rarely apart from their riders for longer than a day at most, but Nykin hadn’t expected to be so affected by Fimor’s absence. The bond pulsed between them, even over this distance, but the longing to be closer was an ache deep in his chest.

“Fimor, I….”
He rubbed a hand over his heart, not knowing how to put it into words.

“I know. I feel it. But our bond is strong, Nykin.”

Nykin didn’t fully understand how dragon magic worked over their bond, but somehow Fimor managed to send a wave of warmth and comfort that enveloped him from the inside out. The ache in his chest all but disappeared, and Nykin almost believed that if he reached out a hand, he’d feel the rough scrape of scales under his fingertips.

“When will you be at the clearing?”
Fimor asked after a while, pulling Nykin back from his thoughts.

“Ryneq says about an hour after midday.”

“Good. I will let Eldin and the others know so they can arrive at the same time. They need to leave it until the last minute to keep the element of surprise.”
Fimor hesitated again.
“Cerylea and thirty members of the palace guard are already there, though.”

“Only thirty?”
Nykin had no idea how many soldiers Hatak had brought with him, but he’d hoped the odds would be slightly more in Torsere’s favor. Thirty palace guards didn’t seem that many.

“They cannot leave the Palace unprotected, Nykin. With both Cerylea and Ryneq away, this would be the perfect opportunity for an attack. Hatak may be watching the palace, so we couldn’t risk trying to get any more out undetected. Besides… the dragon riders will be there too.”

Of course. Nykin felt foolish for forgetting. With the dragon riders circling above, Hatak and his men wouldn’t stand a chance.
“How many?”

“Ten dragons with riders, and me. They will pay for what they’ve done to you and King Ryneq. I will make sure of it.”

Fimor hissed the last few words, his voice sounding tight with barely concealed rage. Nykin shuddered a little. He’d never heard him like that before.
“Be careful tomorrow, Fimor. Please.”

“Always, Nykin. Now go get some rest, and I shall see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, okay.”
Nykin felt tiredness seep into his bones as soon as Fimor uttered the words.
“Good night.”

“Good night, Nykin.”

“S
O
,” N
YKIN
said as Ryneq sat down beside him. “Fimor’s almost healed.” Ryneq gestured for him to continue, and Nykin told him everything Fimor had said. He noticed Ryneq flinch when he mentioned Cerylea, but other than that, Ryneq just listened.

“Good,” he said after Nykin finished speaking. “With any luck we’ll all be back in the palace in a couple of days.”

Nykin shifted, trying to get more comfortable against the tree trunk. “If we’re leading Hatak to the clearing, where will the Torserian Guard be?” He’d been thinking about this all afternoon. “It’s not like Hatak won’t notice thirty soldiers just standing around.”

“There used to be a small village just beyond the tree line,” Ryneq said, poking a stick into the ground and disturbing the leaves around their feet. “But when the river flooded and ruined all the land, it was abandoned for higher ground.” Nykin had a vague recollection of someone mentioning it when they’d been planning Ryneq’s rescue. “Nysad will hide his men and Cerylea in the old houses. I seem to remember that there are enough of them still intact.”

“Oh, yes,” Nykin said, as he suddenly remembered Fimor flying over a scattering of wooden houses on one of their practice sessions. He just hadn’t connected the two together before now. “I think I’ve seen them.”

Ryneq tossed his stick onto the ground and glanced over at Nykin. “The village itself is a fair way into Torserian territory. Hatak may be impatient to get Cerylea, but Seran is no fool. I’m surprised he’s willing to lead his men out into the open like that. Especially considering the airborne advantage that Torsere has over them.”

Oh. Nykin felt the niggling doubts begin to creep in. He’d not given it much thought before—he’d just assumed Hatak would be so obsessed with getting the princess that he’d blindly follow them wherever they went. But Hatak wasn’t stupid and neither was Seran.

“I think we may have underestimated Hatak and Seran,” Nykin said eventually. “They’re going to know, aren’t they? As soon as they see we’ve left the safety of the forest, they’re surely going to be aware that there’s a strong possibility this is a trap.”

Ryneq cocked an eyebrow at him, and Nykin got the feeling Ryneq was well aware of this fact. “Didn’t you factor this into your plan?”

Nykin swallowed and looked anywhere but at Ryneq, because no, he didn’t remember this being part of the discussion at all. “We just assumed he’d want Cerylea enough to follow you anywhere to get her.”

“He does, but I imagine he’ll also want to stay alive.” Ryneq looked like he wanted to roll his eyes, but he refrained.

“Why didn’t you say something earlier?” Nykin asked, thinking that this far into the plan was perhaps not the best time to raise the issue.

“Because we didn’t have any other option at the time.” Ryneq sighed and reached for the stick again, obviously feeling the need to do something with his hands. “Besides, if they were willing to go along with your suggestion in the first place, then maybe I’m wrong. Maybe we’re giving them too much credit, and they’re not worried about dragons at all,” he poked at the ground again, flicking the leaves away from his feet before continuing. “Hatak took great delight in telling me they’ve been watching the Stone Palace. That’s how they knew Cerylea hadn’t returned. If that’s true, then it also means they’ll have been watching the dragon riders’ movements too.”

“Oh, yes,” Nykin added, sitting up a bit straighter. “According to Fimor, Eldin and the others aren’t leaving the palace until the last possible moment, so hopefully it’ll be too late for anyone to warn Hatak.” Maybe he’d been worrying for nothing. He was tired, hungry, and thirsty, after all. Perhaps his brain was too exhausted to think clearly. Not that it mattered much at this point. They could only lead the lowland soldiers to the clearing tomorrow. Neither of them had any control over what would happen after that.

Ryneq didn’t look as relieved by that statement as Nykin was expecting. “If I was him, though,” Ryneq said, pausing to lick his lips, and Nykin had to look away quickly, “I wouldn’t leave the safety of the forest until I was certain there were either no dragons around, or I had some guarantee they wouldn’t attack.”

Nykin looked up sharply as he suddenly grasped what Ryneq was implying. Only one thing would guarantee the dragons wouldn’t attack—using Ryneq as leverage. If Hatak acted as Ryneq was suggesting, he’d try and recapture them before they made it past the tree line.
Fuck.
“We need to get out of the forest before he catches up with us.” If Hatak got his hands on them before they could get clear of the trees, then the plan would fail and people would die.

No matter whether Hatak was expecting dragons or not, if he refused to leave the forest there was the strong possibility he’d see them as soon as they reached the edge of the trees—there were no hiding places in the sky. Hatak would no doubt demand Cerylea in exchange for Ryneq, and Ryneq would never agree, and no one would attack while they still held Ryneq, and—“We could go now,” Nykin whispered urgently. “If we were quiet enough, maybe we could slip away without Hatak even noticing we’ve gone. We don’t even know if he’s that close! He might—”

“He’s close,” Ryneq cut him off in a hushed whisper. “There’s been someone watching us for a while now.”

Nykin clamped his mouth shut immediately, but Ryneq reached out to lay a hand on his arm. “Not close enough to hear, but close enough to notice if we disappear.” He looked up at the sky, where the moon proved his point, its soft silvery light illuminating them for all to see. “They won’t let us out of their sight, Nykin, not now. We just need to get Hatak and his men to the edge of the clearing, close enough for the palace guard to be able to circle back around and flush them out. Whatever it takes.”

Nykin didn’t need Ryneq to spell it out further. He meant letting Hatak use them as human shields and doing the very thing Nykin was afraid of. If Hatak had them, he would be overconfident and far more likely to venture out into the open. Officially the worst plan ever, but apparently all they had if they wanted to lure Hatak out. Nykin felt all the hope he’d had for a positive outcome fading away, no matter how hard he tried to cling to it. One last option remained, though. “If we get to the village before Hatak gets to us, would it matter if he didn’t follow? You would be free, and that was the whole point of the plan, after all.”

“It’s too late for that.”

“But—”

Ryneq put a finger to his lips, then waved it around them in a circle. Nykin strained to listen, and sure enough, he could hear a faint rustle of leaves in the otherwise quiet night.
Fuck
. Nykin rested his head back against the tree and tried to slow his rapid heartbeat. They were so close to being rescued, but still too far away for the Torserian Guards to help them. He wanted to call for Fimor, to let his dragon calm the rising panic welling in his chest. But Fimor needed his rest, and the forest was still too thick for him to do anything, anyway.

Ryneq squeezed Nykin’s arm, obviously sensing his growing despair. “I trust my soldiers, Nykin. We just need to get close enough to the village for them to attack Hatak’s men.”

Nykin rolled his head to the side and raised an eyebrow, because really? That’s
all
they had to do? Hatak’s men had them surrounded, and they still had a few hours’ walk ahead of them. Nykin didn’t like their chances.

“Get some sleep.” Ryneq pushed himself to his feet and brushed the dirt and leaves from his clothes. “I don’t think Hatak will do anything before morning, but I’ll take first watch anyway.”

Nykin nodded and closed his eyes, reaching up to rub at the side of his head. All the what-ifs and maybes were starting to give him a headache. They really had no idea what either Hatak or Seran were thinking, and trying to predict their actions could prove disastrous. He didn’t expect to fall asleep any time soon, his mind swirling with everything that could go wrong tomorrow, but he was out within moments.

R
YNEQ
LET
Nykin sleep through the night, rousing him about an hour before dawn, judging from the color of the sky. He shook Nykin’s shoulder and placed his hand over Nykin’s mouth as he started to speak. “We need to go.” Ryneq’s lips were right next to his ear, and warm breath tickled his skin. Ryneq held out a hand and hauled Nykin quickly upright. “Come on.”

They moved silently through the trees. Nykin wanted to know why they weren’t waiting for the sun to rise, but the one time he’d tried to ask, Ryneq had glared him into snapping his mouth shut. So he kept his questions to himself and just followed.

“I think we’re in the clear, but we need to keep moving.” Ryneq slowed down long enough for Nykin to draw alongside him, then picked up their pace again.

“I thought we were leaving at dawn?” Nykin said, dodging the low branches of nearby trees.

“We were,” Ryneq answered, casting a quick glance behind them. “But Hatak’s men have been moving around for the past hour or so, probably changing our guard, and they weren’t being exactly stealthy or quick about it. I thought we might have a chance at slipping away.” He paused a moment, looking left and right, before grabbing Nykin’s arm and tugging him down behind a large tree.

Nykin held perfectly still as two Athisian soldiers rushed past, clearly searching for them. Nykin had only seen Rodethian soldiers up till now, but it made sense that Hatak would bring his own guard along for this. As soon as they’d passed, Ryneq pulled him up again.

“As soon as the two behind us moved, I woke you,” Ryneq continued as if nothing had interrupted them. Nykin didn’t bother replying, since Ryneq had already started moving again.