Powers of the Six (16 page)

Alec snorted. “Name one Rol’dan—man or woman—who hasn’t embraced the king’s service. Name one kind thing a Rol’dan has done that didn’t benefit them first.” Alec leaned forward in challenge.

His words pierced Nolan. Alec was right, of course. Even Nolan’s choices had been selfish ones. He’d avoided the Rol’dan to save himself. Even now, Nolan had the knowledge to save Alec, yet he hesitated. A coward. He was more interested in his own safety than Alec’s.

Nolan knew, right then, what he should do. There was no other way to make Alec understand.

He looked into Alec’s tortured face and let his Shay power emerge. His body warmed and relaxed as the blue light of Accuracy shone from his eyes.

The anger on Alec’s face melted away and his eyes widened. Staggering, he swept his arm across the desktop, scattering its contents, and landed—rather ungracefully—on his backside. Eyes bulging, he stared at Nolan as if he’d seen a Dor’Jan.

Nolan took a step, and Alec held up his hand, palm open, to stop him.

“It’s impossible,” he whispered. “You can’t be a … a …”

“A Shay user?” Nolan answered.

“B-but how?”

“I received my power like anyone else.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Alec snapped.

Nolan picked up some papers from the ground. “Your opinion of the Rol’dan hasn’t encouraged me to share.” He eyed Alec. “Besides, it’s my deepest secret. I don’t tell anyone.”

“But you show me now?”

“I … I didn’t know any other way to help you understand.”

“Understand?” Alec glared. “You want me to understand you’re a liar! That I can’t trust you any more than I can your brother?”

“No,” he objected. “It’s not like that. I wanted you to understand that you don’t have to be like them.”

Alec scowled. Then he rose, examining Nolan’s eyes.

“You’re Accuracy?” he finally asked.

“Yes.”

“But you were terrible on the archery range.”

“I hit exactly where I’d aimed.”

“But you missed every shot.” Realization washed over Alec’s face. “You missed on purpose? Crows, Nolan. You knew what would happen.”

Nolan cringed. “Yes. I knew.”

Alec stared again. “But you aren’t even a Rol’dan? You participated in the tournament, didn’t you? You said your father disowned you for failing.”

Nolan set a book on his desk and straightened a few crumpled pages. “I failed my trial on purpose.”

Alec’s eyes widened. “I didn’t even recognize my power until it came on me. Didn’t your Shay come at your trial?”

“It did.”

“How could you hide it? It’d be impossible.”

Nolan sighed. “Not impossible. But it was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.”

Alec stared at the ground, his face knotted into a troubled frown.

“When I failed my trial,” Nolan said. “I thought I was the only one who didn’t want to be a Rol’dan. Kael used to be good. A cocky, arrogant fool at times, but he was a good person. He was my friend as well as my brother. After he left for the Rol’dan, it all changed. He changed.

“I hid because I saw what the Rol’dan did to him. It was the only way I had to avoid becoming one. And until now, I thought this life was my only choice.”

“It must be nice to have a choice,” Alec grumbled. “I have none.”

“Maybe. Maybe not,” Nolan said.

A puzzled expression crossed Alec’s face.

Nolan hesitated. His next words would change everything. “What do you know about the prisoner held in Alton?”

“The Traitor of Faylinn?” he asked. “Not much. He was the general, wasn’t he?”

Nolan nodded. “His name is Emery Cadogan. Six years ago, he deserted the Rol’dan.”

“And now he’s rotting in Alton’s prison.”

“He’s got friends,” Nolan added. “Others who have powers like us. They have this place where we can go.”

“Where’d you hear such stupid rumors?”

“Emery told me. If we can free him somehow, we could join him and—”

“You talked to the traitor?” Alec stared, open-mouthed. He lowered his voice to a whisper. “Do you realize what you’re suggesting? If we get caught—”

“Yes, if we’re caught, we’ll die. But at least you won’t be Rol’dan.”

Alec nodded. “But what about you? You’re already free. Why would you become a traitor? Why risk your life for me?”

“I’d gain a chance to be myself for the first time in two years. And besides …” He inhaled and released a breath slowly. “I need to stop hiding and doing nothing.”

Alec met his eyes, and a flicker of Speed light flared in their depths. His lips parted into a wide grin. “Aye. And it’s about time, too.”

The tent flap opened, and a young Rol’dan soldier poked his head inside. “Alec, we need to get back to the lodge. They’re giving us our last-minute orders before we prepare for the journey home.”

Alec punched Nolan’s arm. “Talk to you later.” He ducked around the young soldier and went outside.

Nolan rubbed his stinging arm and opened the tent flap; his stomach dropped. The young soldier bore the orange cape of the Perception Rol’dan.
By Brim! What did he hear?

Alec and the soldier passed the torch post where Nolan had found Alec earlier. They stopped. Alec picked up a bag, flung it over his shoulder, and then continued on.

Nolan closed the flap, his heart racing. Their plans could be ruined before they even started.

With shaking hands, Nolan gathered scrolls for the families of those who would not return. He couldn’t even imagine how Uncle Camden would feel when instead of a daughter, a scroll returned in her place. Camden was not the type of man who took pleasure in glory or fame. Unlike Nolan’s father, Camden would mourn the loss deeply.

Nolan also wrote a proclamation for Alec’s father, though Alec would arrive in Alton to tell his father personally; Alton was one of the many stops between here and Faylinn. It would be an unpleasant reunion between Alec and his father. Unlike Nolan’s uncle, the news would bring a whole different type of grief upon Kardos Deverell.

He packed the rest of his meager belongings and scanned the tent one last time. This would be his last trip to the Tournament of Awakening. An odd mixture of sadness, fear, and excitement stirred inside him. Either they’d free Emery, or they’d be discovered, labeled as traitors, and put to death.

Nolan wasn’t sure which option scared him more.

Alec and Taryn flashed in his mind, as well as Emery Cadogan, sitting in the West Tower of Alton alone. There was no turning back. Three people now depended on him. A new, open page of Nolan’s life had begun.

Chapter Thirteen

NOLAN LEANED AGAINST THE SIDE of the boat. The warm breeze brushed his face, and the sun filtered through his closed eyelids. He inhaled and released it slowly, doing his best to enjoy the beautiful weather. The water’s gentle churning was peaceful, as well as the soft melodies of the frogs and birds as they drifted along. But nothing Nolan did, nor any forest sounds, could calm his nerves as they neared Alton.

The task before them was immense. Some might say impossible. Guards were stationed around the clock, and the Rol’dan would be among those who watched. There would be only a short amount of time to rescue Emery before Kael took him to King Alcandor. Poor Emery’s only chance lay in the hands of a scribe and a hotheaded youth. But even so, they weren’t without hope.

Nolan could come and go in the manor without suspicion. He also now had a sling—the first weapon he’d owned—and though most might think it a worthless weapon, it was easy to hide, quiet, and went well with his Accuracy Shay. But Nolan’s most important tool had nothing to do with him. That weapon lay in the superb sword skills and Speed of Alec Deverell.

A shadow blocked the sun from his closed eyes. Nolan opened them to Alec standing above.

Nolan smiled. “I was thinking of you.”

“Good things, I hope.”

“Are you allowed to come amongst the inferior, common folk?” Nolan asked.

“I don’t think they noticed.” Alec motioned toward a group of Rol’dan. They reclined under a canopy, sipping frothy mugs and laughing obnoxiously.

“Besides,” Alec said, “it’s getting far too crowded over there with their swollen heads.”

Nolan laughed. “Well then, welcome to where the smaller heads reside.”

Alec exhaled a deep sigh. “Thanks. I can’t take it anymore.” He plopped next to Nolan and placed his leather bag in his lap. Side by side, they sat in silence.

After some time, Nolan yawned and noticed Alec gazing at the riverbank as it drifted by. Nolan’s eyes dropped to Alec’s lap where his hands rested on his leather bag. It was simple, as far as bags went. Worn spots marred the edges. He started at it, unable to pull his eyes away.

“Nolan?”

Nolan shook his head.

“You awake?” Alec asked.

“Yes, of course.”

“Well, I asked you how you’ve been getting along, but you never answered.”

“I’m sorry. Tired, I suppose.” Nolan ran a hand over his face. “Have you had time to talk to Taryn?”

“No,” Alec said, his expression becoming more serious. “She’s on the first boat. General Trividar hasn’t let her out of his sight. I think he separated us on purpose.”

It sounded like Kael, considering all the attention he’d lavished on her.

“What’s with him, anyway?” Alec asked. “They’re cousins, for Brim’s sake. And he’s too old for her.”

“I don’t think it has anything to do with Taryn.”

Alec grunted. “Oh? Did you see the way he looks at her?”

“It has more to do with her mother.”

“Her mother? How so?”

Nolan sighed, trying to decide the best way to explain the complicated relationship. “When my mother died, Alana, Taryn’s mother, sort of stepped in and helped our family. She was a neighborhood girl. I was only a baby, and she became the mom I never knew. Kael, on the other hand, was old enough to notice her differently.”

“I see.” Alec sat up and moved his hands to his lap, fidgeting with the strap on his bag, drawing Nolan’s attention to it again. “So he loved her?”

“More like an obsession,” Nolan answered. “She was eight years older than he was and never saw him the same way he saw her. Eventually, she fell in love with my uncle, Camden. They married soon after. Kael has never gotten over her.”

Their conversation faded into silence. Nolan’s memories of his family muddled with escape plans, but his eyes kept darting to the bag in Alec’s lap.
Why in the name of Brim am I so focused on the cursed thing?

Finally, Nolan couldn’t take it any longer. “What are you carrying?”

Alec looked puzzled, and then he followed Nolan’s gaze. “In here?”

“Yes. In there.”

“Why?”

Nolan shrugged, trying to appear indifferent. “Was curious.”

Alec opened it and removed a crumpled, bloodstained tunic. “Some clothes, mostly. At least what’s left of them. The tournament destroyed most of my things.”

Nolan craned his neck, trying to peer in. Alec stuffed the contents back in and placed it on his other side.

“I’m sure your bag is more interesting than mine,” Alec said.

Nolan forced a laugh. “I’m not sure how exciting ink and quills would be.” He looked to the barge in front of them. A Rol’dan soldier leaned on the railing, staring. Nolan’s heart choked in his throat; it was the Perception Rol’dan who had reclaimed Alec from the tent the other night, the same one who might’ve heard their conversation.

Nolan nudged Alec. “Who’s that?”

The soldier quickly looked away.

Alec’s arm tensed. “His name is Daren Kinsley. He’s pretty new. Came into Perception a few months before the trials—a mining accident or something. Never found out all the details. But I guess it was bad enough it forced his Shay power.”

Nolan and Alec’s eyes met in silent understanding. Their conversation wasn’t safe anymore.

***

When their boats rounded a bend in the river, the city of Alton came into view. Behind the docks, large stone walls surrounded the city. Guards stood at their posts atop the wall, leaning forward as they watched the approach. A horde of people gathered on the docks, cheering as they caught sight of the boats.

The people pushed each other while waving flags of the Rol’dan.

Though Alec hadn’t mentioned home since starting their journey, Nolan could see the fear of confronting his father lining Alec’s scarred face.

They bumped against the dock and jumped from the boats, wedging behind a wall of guards pushing against the crowd.

Alec yelled over the commotion, “What’s with these people? Don’t they have anything better to do?”

“It’s our welcome home,” Nolan said. “Don’t tell me you’ve never seen this. You’ve lived in Alton all your life.”

“I always heard the noise from the shop, but I never imagined …” Alec shook his head. “My father always kept me at home. Said he wouldn’t watch the Rol’dan parade their new dogs …” He flinched and said no more.