Sky Raiders (45 page)

“You did that?” Cole asked.

Mira nodded and let out a shocked giggle.

“She’s gone?” Cole asked. “It worked?”

Mira nodded again. “I got a big dose of my power back before she turned on us. Suddenly I could sense her tangible form more clearly than ever, brittle and false, but with so much energy boiling inside. Energy that belonged to me. I had the strongest urge to release it.”

“You released it, all right,” Twitch said with a nervous laugh.

“It worked,” Liam confirmed. “Carnag is gone. I sense none of her presence.”

“I can feel my power,” Mira said. “It’s been so long. At the same time . . . it’s incredibly familiar. Like I only lost it yesterday.”

Liam glided over to where the former prisoners had
gathered after exiting Carnag. “Move along,” he announced from his floating disk. “You need to go find the people trapped in Carnag’s stronghold. The nearest road is that way. Nothing to see here. Smartest policy might be to pretend none of this ever happened.”

Cole doubted whether anybody would be able to forget what happened, but the freed captives started trudging away. The giant form of the fallen Carnag lay inert, not disappearing like fake Mira, but utterly lifeless, no longer anything more than a baffling heap of random debris.

“What do we do with Quima?” Jace asked, standing over her.

“I have some questions for her,” Liam said, returning. “I want a little more privacy first.”

His posture uncomfortable, Jace glanced at Cole. “Thanks. You really bailed us out.”

“Thank Liam,” Cole said. “Thank Mira. Without them, we wouldn’t have had a chance.”

Liam shook his head. “I helped. But Carnag’s power was much more than I could have defeated. Mira was amazing. But without your quick thinking, Cole, I don’t think any of us would have survived.”

“You really were a lifesaver,” Mira said.

Cole tried not to blush. The temperature of his face implied that he was failing.

The nearest of the departing captives was now hundreds of yards away and getting farther with every step. “All right,” Liam said. “Let’s talk to Quima.”

The gag disappeared from her mouth. “You have no idea
what you’re tangling with,” Quima spat. “Today you crossed the wrong woman.”

Liam shook his head. “I’m not sure that’s the lesson here. I think you crossed the wrong girl.”

“Think what you like,” Quima said. “Mira has only delayed her ruin. This was one small piece of a much larger puzzle.”

“Not surprising,” Liam said. “I want to hear more about shapecraft.”

Quima’s smile was both knowing and taunting all at once. “Grant me permission, and I’ll show you.”

“Considering what happened to Mira, I’m going to decline,” Liam said. “I’ve worked with some knowledgeable shapers, but I’ve never heard of shapecraft.”

“After meeting Carnag, you’ve had a lesson,” Quima said. “I think that’s enough for today. Those who practice shapecraft have done so quietly for longer than you can guess. Our time is nearing. You’ll learn plenty before long. Be warned—what you don’t know can hurt you.”

“Does my father practice shapecraft?” Mira asked.

“To an extent,” Quima said.

“Did he have help taking my powers?”

Quima paused, eyes narrow. “There is more to my order than you can imagine, Miracle. Without us, your father would be the least competent in a long line of High Shapers.”

“Who helped him?” Mira asked.

“You’ll learn nothing more from me,” Quima said. “Mira, I’m no less dedicated to my cause than you are to yours. Let me show you how it’s done.” Closing her eyes, she made a tight fist.

“What do you mean?” Liam asked.

Quima opened her hand, revealing a pinprick of blood on her palm. “My ring hid a poisoned needle.”

“You’d have to be careful with one of those,” Liam said.

“I’ll be dead in minutes,” Quima promised. “No matter what methods you might have to extract what I know, they won’t work before I’m well out of reach.”

“You may be right,” Liam said. “But surely you’ll share some last thoughts. Some dying hints. You don’t want to go out with a fizzle.”

Quima gave a wide, evil grin. “If you wish. Carnag was weak. It was weak because it was docile. With a little more time, I could have overcome that tendency. The others will not be as frail.”

“What others?” Mira asked. “Is this happening to all my sisters?”

“That won’t be a mystery for long,” Quima said. “They have distinct shaping styles. Their powers will take form differently. None will be as pathetic as yours. And the semblances that arise from your sisters are only the beginning.”

“What will come after?” Liam asked.

“You’ll know when it arrives,” Quima said. “Assuming you’re still alive.”

“I feel whole,” Mira said. “My father no longer has a share of my power.”

Quima shook her head, as if Mira was missing the point. “Your father is the least of your problems. But even Stafford has not yet outlived his usefulness. His talents wane, but his authority remains. And he stole powers once . . .”

Cole felt a surge of fear. “My friends! The High King was looking for slaves with shaping powers.”

Throwing her head back, Quima laughed grandly. The genuine delight gave Cole chills. “You have friends among his slaves? Friends with shaping talent? They will learn of shapecraft. The experiments reserved for them may teach us all new lessons.”

“What experiments?” Cole asked, fear flaring into anger.

Quima shook her head.

“Tell him what you know,” Liam said.

“Or what?” Quima laughed. “You’ll kill me? Too late. You’ll get no more from me.”

“What about your part in this?” Liam asked. “Carnag. Did you form it with your shapecraft?”

“The power became a semblance because of shapecraft,” Quima said. “All part of a larger plan than you could possibly guess. Its creation wasn’t my doing, but I helped steer Carnag in the right direction.”

“Did you steer it with shapecraft?” Liam asked. “Or with counsel?”

“Use your imagination,” Quima said.

“But you were planning to take control of it?” Mira asked.

“I had control!” Quima said. “I should have taken full control.”

“That would have required Mira’s compliance?” Liam asked.

“No, I was just being polite,” Quima said. “We’re done. I fell short of my aims and failed my order. It is a small failure, inconsequential in the long run, but I’m ready to pay
for it. Any second the symptoms of the poison will start.”

“Yeah,” Liam said. “About that . . . I shaped your poison. I’m really good at analyzing substances. And changing them. I’m rather amazing, actually. You stabbed yourself with honey. If your palm could taste, it would have been delicious.”

Cole couldn’t resist laughing at the stunned look on her face. Jace joined in, and even Twitch covered a snicker.

“Impossible,” Quima retorted breathlessly.

“For some shapers, maybe,” Liam said. “Kind of routine for me. My boss will really want to talk to you, so I’m going to make sure you don’t harm yourself in the near future.”

He waved a hand, and a golden strip of fabric emerged from the ground and bound itself around her mouth. She strained against the cords that held her.

“I know you like hiding in private rooms, so I’ll give you one,” Liam said. Quima sank into the ground as if it were quicksand. Liam glanced at Mira. “Now we can really talk. Don’t worry, I’m putting her deep.”

“What are you going to do with her?” Cole asked.

“Like I promised, I’ll take her to Declan,” Liam replied. “He’ll be very interested to speak with her.”

“Do you think you can find out what the High King wants to do to my friends?” Cole asked.

“Hard to guess,” Liam said. “Declan may have the best chance.”

“Maybe he wants their power,” Mira said.

“That’s what I thought at first,” Cole said. “But Quima made it sound like there was more to it.”

“She may have been trying to scare us,” Liam said. “Everything she told us could have been a lie.”

“I have a feeling it’s not just a bluff,” Mira said.

“Me too,” Liam said. “We’ll see what Declan can get out of her.”

“He’s safe?” Mira asked.

“Safe enough,” Liam said. “We had to leave most of what he built behind. Lyrus couldn’t come with us, so we left him in charge of the defense of Cloudvale. I’ve never seen him happier. The legion will have a very unpleasant job ahead of them. It’s possible that once they confirm we’ve fled, they’ll retreat.”

“What now?” Mira asked.

Liam glanced at the sky and looked around. “We find Bertram, send your captured legionnaire on his way, then wait for Joe to catch up. He had a message for you that he wouldn’t share with me.”

“Any hints?” Mira asked.

“I expect it’s important.”

35

C
ole hunched on a stool outside of a beautiful cottage. A soft wind carried the scent of leaves and wildflowers. The autocoach waited nearby, Bertram sitting contentedly inside.

After traveling a considerable distance from where Carnag had fallen, Liam and Mira had shaped the cottage in less than an hour, complete with beds, furniture, a big fireplace, paintings on the walls, and a garden out back. This was the second afternoon after the cottage had risen.

Cole could not stop worrying about his friends. When Liam had moved Quima to a new underground cell near the cottage, she had refused to respond to any inquiry. With her blank expression and her dazed manner, she had seemed unreachable.

Lacking further information, all Cole could do was wonder and fret about Dalton and Jenna. If the High King took their shaping power, he would have to keep them alive, or the power would be lost, right? Would it bother his friends to lose
their power if they only had it briefly? Or was the problem something else? Quima had referred to experiments. Given all that shaping could accomplish, the experiments could involve almost anything.

Mira and Liam had shared vague assurances that they would help, but, really, they were all waiting. They needed more information.

Fluttering down from the sky, Mango landed near the cottage door. Cole got off the stool. “What is it?”

“I need to tell Mira that a rider approaches,” the bird announced.

“Is it Joe?” Cole asked.

“Of course, silly. I’m not raising an alarm!”

By the time Cole had retrieved Mira, Liam, Jace, and Twitch from inside the cottage, they could hear hoofbeats. Cole clung to a faint hope that Mira’s messenger might reveal something about how he could help Jenna and Dalton.

Before long the horseman rode into view. He cantered across the field to them and dismounted. Cole recognized the man who had come to Skyport just before the legionnaires arrived, his whiskers longer, his leather jacket further dulled by dust. Joe pointed at the cottage. “Looks like you’ve settled in!”

Liam shrugged. “It’s far from any convenient roads.”

“I saw Carnag,” Joe said. “What was left of it. Thanks for waiting. Glad I could help.”

Liam lifted his hands apologetically. “Did you notice any legionnaires on the road?”

“That was only part of the fun!” Joe exclaimed. “Do you
know how hard I rode to get here? I galloped through the night, trading horses, spending money like a compulsive gambler, and using every trick I knew.”

“Mira, meet Joe MacFarland,” Liam said. “Joe, this is Miracle Pemberton. These three boys are her friends.”

Joe gave a respectful bow. “I’m at your service, Your Highness.”

“Nice to meet you,” Mira said uncomfortably. “Just call me Mira, please.”

“Whatever you prefer,” Joe said. “I’m glad to find you safe.”

“I’m glad you’re safe too,” Mira said. “Thank you for trying to warn me about the legion back at Skyport. Was there more to your message?”

Joe glanced at Liam. “I learned about the legionnaires while on my way to find you. The message regarded other matters.”

Mira looked surprised. “What?”

Joe looked from Cole to Jace to Twitch. “I was supposed to take you and Durny to confront Carnag. If we succeeded, we had a second assignment. It concerns one of your sisters. Would you rather I tell you in private?”