Warrior Queen (Skeleton Key) (6 page)

He was already in enough trouble without misreading any other signals. Besides, she got it on with priests during rituals. He had zero magical ability.

He was going home. That was what he needed to focus on.

“I’ll be here, then.” With his two best buddies, the guards.

“We will talk later.” Then she walked away and he was too aware of the way her skirt clung to what he knew was her bare butt.

F
rom the highest
point in the palace, Keleti watched as the invading army marched closer. Their shields glinted like silver teardrops in the afternoon sun. None of the cities she’d heard back from had seen her cousin. She had sent messages to even more distant cities. Several cities had promised to send ships; they would head south and make sure the Southerners got no reinforcement.

She had archers already beyond the city walls, lying in wait. Come dusk, as the invaders relaxed for the night and stripped off their metal armor, her warriors would attack before melting back into the shadows and finding safety off the edge of the cliff. If one knew where to look, there were ways down and places to hide.

As she studied the invaders, a small knot of people marched forward while the rest of the army halted. Even with her sharp sight the army seemed to snake on forever. It didn’t, she knew that. The soldiers were four abreast on the road that lead to the walled city. A hundred deep as her best estimate. They had sent several ships of soldiers. They must want her land and her magic pretty badly.

To the left was the river that ran past the city, a small offshoot ran beneath the city wall. The city also had wells.

The soldiers would sink fast in their heavy metal armor. It protected their chests and their heads, but left their legs vulnerable. They had great swords, but their bows lacked the distance her archers could achieve.

She had refused to trade weapons, but she had no doubt that they had stolen weapons off the bodies of any warrior they killed. That meant they would have some of her long range bows.

The little party of invaders got closer to the city. This was the start of their peace talks. They would ask her to surrender, then threaten. She would wait them out.

They stopped outside of range. But with her hawk sight, she could see their faces clearly. They were all men except for one.

Her cousin.

Her breath caught. They had caught her. But how?

Then she noticed that Nadri wasn’t tied up. She was dressed as they were.

Keleti blinked not sure what that could mean at first. But understanding broke with a sinking sensation. Nadri wasn’t a prisoner. She was talking to the man next to her. He put his hand on her. He was the man who had tried to take over by becoming king. Who had then demanded her daughter as a peace offering, claiming that Keleti had broken their engagement. She pressed her lips together. Engagement. There had been no promise, only negotiations. That he’d revealed his hand so early had been a blessing.

No one in the city would have accepted a Southerner as anything but consort, no man could be anything but a consort, and he had no right to rule. No divine blood moved through his veins.

And yet her cousin stood with him. Touching him.

Betrayal made Keleti’s mouth sour.

Below, messengers spoke. Theirs and hers. She’d be getting called. They’d be wanting to talk. What offer would they make this time? What demands did they have? Or would this be a formal notice of war?

As if she needed it when she could see what they had planned. They hadn’t come all this way for peace.

She turned away and went down the winding staircase so she could get ready to face her cousin. Maybe she should have taken the invader as consort, then made sure that he had no power. But she didn’t want to live with a man who thought women couldn’t rule. Her cousin had obviously decided she could.

Keleti drew in a breath and paused.

Nadri must think letting him become king was her way to the throne. Keleti hadn’t realized that Nadri wanted to rule so badly. She wouldn’t make that mistake again.

She wouldn’t underestimate either of her enemies again.

A man ran up to her, his skirt in his fist—which he promptly dropped when he saw her—then slowed to a walk. “Heavenly, the invader and your cousin wish to speak with you.” His eyes were wide as if he were horrified at the betrayal.

Keleti couldn’t let that sting show. She had to be calm and present a firm hold. “Fetch the Ambassador from Australia.”

It would be interesting to see how he responded. To see if the invaders responded to his presence.

Perhaps the invaders would back off when they saw that she had other allies. It was a bluff, but no one knew that. When people asked where he had come, from she could honestly answer that he had a great magic to travel vast distances.

The lie only had to last until reinforcements arrived.

Without waiting, she strode out onto the walkway along the top of the wall and looked down on the soldiers and her cousin. She let them stand, then twitch with anticipation. Their eyes darted around. Even Nadri seemed unsure. Keleti pressed her lips together. She hoped the gods saw the betrayal and would see her cousin punished. The invaders’ messenger approached the gates again. Hers would say that she had been summoned.

That message was relayed back to the invaders, who looked disgruntled at being forced to wait. They had turned up at her front door and they had no right to make demands. Hospitality was a choice, one she had extended once before, but would never again extend to them.

Never again to her cousin.

She would let that betrayal be known, and Nadri would find no home among her own people. For all that the magic blood was rare, they didn’t need anyone who would sell their people to invaders for personal power.

Keleti heard Bryce approach. Without looking back, she marched to a position above the gate. Archers stood by; their arrows notched and ready should this be a trap of some kind, but she saw no Southern archers lurking with the intent to kill her.

“I am here only to check on the welfare of my cousin.” She certainly wasn’t going to let the soldier think it was for him. Her voice was loud and clear.

“She is well. She saw reason where you did not.” The man’s words reached her.

“Then let her speak.” Or did the soldier forbid it? Was Nadri really willing to give up her freedom and obey a Southerner?

There was a quiet conversation that she couldn’t hear, but she could see their lips moving. No one else on the wall would be able to see what she could. The magic that let her change form gifted her with the ability to see great distances when she needed to.

“Surrender, step aside so that I may rule. There need not be a battle.” Nadri smiled up at her as though there was nothing amiss between the two of them.

For how long had her cousin been plotting with these people?

Keleti kept her face as still as stone, knowing Nadri would be watching every muscle twitch, the same way she was watching her cousin. “No, I will not step aside. But you are right there is no need for there to be a battle. You wanted the magic and now you have it. Take my cousin and return to your lands.”

“For your insult, we will take the city,” the soldier said, puffing out his chest. His metal chest plate glinted.

“And what do I claim for the insult you gave me for assuming that I would give up my right to rule to you, a man with no magic? We are even. We are done.” She stepped back.

“You risk the city and your people for your pride,” Nadri called

“You betrayed your family and your city and your people for power, Nadri. We will not forget.” But now the invaders had a Heavenly. If they were smart, they would learn to use that magic. She hoped that they weren’t.

“You could kill them both now,” Bryce muttered behind her.

Her cousin’s gaze narrowed on Bryce, but there was only surprise there.

“Then they would seek retribution,” she said softly. “They have come here to prove a point. They cannot back down without loss of face. All they can do is fight. There was never going to be a peaceful resolution.”

She saw that now. The moment she’d refused him and his offer, and then refused to hand over her daughter. All those times she’d confided in Nadri, her cousin had been plotting her own way to power.

“Your last chance to surrender and end this peacefully,” the soldier shouted.

“And hand my city to a traitor and a man who thinks women should obey, not hold equal voice? No. You would kill me and enslave my children.” She glanced at Bryce.

His eyes were narrowed as he took in the army at her walls. Was he wondering when he could use the key to get home? She wished he did have a magic that would give her allies.

“You have burned other cities on your way here, but you will find this one does not break so easily. Enjoy your new life, Nadri.” Keleti stepped back. She had nothing more to say, only a war to win.

“Who stands with you?” Nadri stepped closer.

Keleti looked at her cousin. She didn’t owe her a reply.

Bryce leaned on the wall and stared down. Then he smiled. “The Ambassador from Australia. A place so far away, I had to use a most powerful magic to get here.”

The soldier pulled Nadri back, and there was some conversation. Nadri touched her ear. Keleti had seen the gold in Nadri’s eyes as she’d used her magic to get a good look at Bryce. If the city fell, they would want him and his magic. Keleti couldn’t allow that to happen either.

The soldier looked decidedly annoyed. His forehead furrowed and he squinted up. He wouldn’t be able to make out the details, though. “You will regret choosing Australia over Vertaland.”

“I doubt it,” Keleti muttered.

“I will be Queen.” Nadri called over her shoulder as the small group rejoined the army.

In a voice that she knew was too soft for Nadri to hear, Keleti responded. “No one will ever bow to you. If this city falls, another Heavenly will be queen before you. They will all know what you have done. I will spread the word.” Keleti tuned away. Her cousin didn’t need to hear the words. She would already know her fate should this fail.

Bryce lingered for a moment as if transfixed, then followed.

E
very time Bryce
blinked he saw the sun glinting on the shields. There had to be over a thousand of them lined up like ants waiting to attack. This was no snatch and grab, this was a planned battle. He’d see documentaries on the Vikings and Romans. He knew a bit about historical battles—as well as the kind that happened in games. Somehow he doubted that his skills as a warrior online were going to help him swing a real sword.

He glanced back and a sick sensation swelled in his stomach.

He’d done crowd control, but here he had no gun and no body armor and no backup. He had nothing. And he was wearing a fucking skirt.

There was certainly no great magic.

He caught up to Keleti, he still didn’t know how he should be addressing her so he went with the honorific. “Heavenly, your cousin can shapeshift?”

“Yes.” She kept striding along, her skirt whipping around her legs. Unlike most people’s, hers reached the ground.

He knew that Keleti had the power to lift a man off the ground as a hawk. That meant her cousin would be able to do the same. The invaders could fly soldiers over the wall. “So how many men could you carry over the wall before you got tired?”

She stopped. “The archers have orders to shoot anyone coming over the walls.”

“Even your cousin?”

She was silent.

He pressed on. “Will they shoot the hawk?”

“They will not shoot a Heavenly. That would anger the gods.” Keleti’s face was grim.

“Then your enemy knows your weakness.” Bryce had no doubt that her cousin had already shared that piece of intelligence.

“I know. Speak when you have something useful to tell me.”

“I’m still getting a grip on what is happening. There is an army at your gate. This is like a Medieval battle. In my world, we don’t do this.” Not like this anyway. Not anymore.

In the cool shadows of the corridor, she stopped and turned. Servants were lighting lamps and closing some of the ornate shutters. Keliti’s face was hard as the polished wood. A mask of perfection with golden eyes. She was using her magic to do something, he didn’t know what.

He felt like he should look away or blink or something, but he couldn’t.

“And how do you fight in Australia?” There was a different tone in her voice. One he’d heard before when she’d questioned him.

“With guns and bombs and planes.” The words tumbled out and he couldn’t stop them. She was making him tell the truth with her magic.

“What are they?” she snapped.

“Guns fire projectiles rapidly, faster than a bow. Planes fly over the enemy and drop bombs…” he looked at her. They drop bombs.”

“The bomb kills? What does it do?”

“Yeah, it kills.” He hesitated, aware of the words but unable to stay silent. “Have you invented gunpowder…black powder?” She was looking blank. That didn’t mean that they couldn’t make something. “We fill a pot with something that will make it explode, and it needs shrapnel, nails, bits of metal.”

The gold faded from her eyes, and they went back to unreadable brown.

He was able to blink and look away. He knew what he’d said and wished he’d been able to bite his tongue. Introducing new weapons was wrong, wasn’t it? “What did you do to me?”

“Made sure that you were telling the truth. Your idea is interesting. Cowardly, but interesting.”

“Modern warfare means you don’t have to look the enemy in the eye and get covered in their blood.”

“And you have done this fighting?”

“No. I was a cop, but I’ve seen homemade bombs. Arrested plenty of people. However, the only battles I’ve ever fought in were in computer games.”

She lifted an eyebrow. He had no idea how to explain that.

“We have mock battles too. Perhaps you should train with our warriors.”

He groaned. “My battles weren’t mock, they were pretend…we have technology…” He didn’t know how to finish that sentence. They might be able to communicate—he was putting that down to magic—but he still couldn’t explain vast chunks of his life to her.

“I will take your bomb idea to the war council.”

“Will I get time off for good behavior?” He forced a smile. Was giving them weapons going to help him get home? Was he interfering and somehow damaging this world? He didn’t know. But he hoped that if he helped, it would make her hand over the key sooner. His fate and future was tied to hers, so he was going to do whatever it took to make sure she survived.

Her eyebrows drew together. “I will know when the time is right for you to go.”

“Ah, right. The gods.” He tried not to sound like a skeptic and failed.

“You do not believe.”

“No.” He wouldn’t lie to her. Not when she could tell when he was lying…unless that was a trick.

Keleti touched his cheek. “What kind of a man doesn’t believe in gods after stepping through a door and into another world?”

He had no answer. He’d never believed in any god. As she looked at him, the lamps flickering and making shadows jump, he thought that she might be able to make him believe in magic.

I
t was late
by the time she’d finished meeting with her advisors about the coming siege. They had discussed Bryce’s bombs, and while the idea sounded good, there was a risk that no one was prepared to take: she’d be the one flying the bombs out.

There hadn’t been a major war in several generations. The cities had unified into clusters when there was no new Heavenly to take over ruling a city. It was seen as bad luck and a lack of favor from the gods, but after a private chat with the priest who had spent the day with Bryce, she knew there was more to it. It would be beneficial if every city had a Heavenly.

Flight was a gift.

But did she dare spread the idea, or would people think she was interfering in the business of the gods? She didn’t know. And for the moment, it wasn’t something that she could think about.

Bryce had brought new ideas.

Too many at once would be a bad thing. She made her way through the palace, the insects chirping away, her servant following softly behind in case she needed something. Two guards a little further behind in case she was attacked. Somehow Keleti had ended up at Nadri’s room. For a moment she stood there and stared at the door. Then she threw it open.

The room was as it had always been. Everything as if her cousin planned on coming back. Keleti drew in a breath. Never. “I want this room cleaned out. Give away the clothes and jewels. I want no trace of her left.”

“Yes, Heavenly.” Her servant inclined her head. By this time tomorrow there would be no sign of the traitor.

The anger simmered in her veins. What tricks would Nadri use to ensure her success?

She knew that Bryce was right. Not shooting a Heavenly was a weakness. One that she was sure her enemy didn’t share.

Nadri knew everything about her and the city down to the last grain store. The only thing she had that Nadri wasn’t expecting was Bryce.

She could wait for the reinforcements from the other cities. Or look strong by implementing new techniques and winning on their own.

At the end of the night, the decision was hers and hers alone. Her advisors and priests could speak their minds, and yet all their words were like sand that she could brush aside.

She left the door open. The room was no longer Nadri’s. While she didn’t know if he’d be up, she wanted someone to talk to who wasn’t expecting her to have all the answers.

No, he just wanted her to hand over the key so he could get home. As long as she had that key, he was on her side. That didn’t make him a trustworthy ally.

She should go to the temple.

But her heart was empty and she couldn’t place the city in the hands of the gods. They had placed it in her hands when she’d accepted the gift of flight, and it was her responsibility.

She remembered the old tales where the Heavenlies from each tribe would take flight to defend whoever was threatened. And they had also fought against each other. Perhaps peace couldn’t last, and war was inevitable because people were never happy with what they had.

There was a man guarding Bryce’s door as she’d ordered. He nodded at her then knocked on the door for her.

“Come in,” Bryce called.

The guard opened the door and she went in. He had the lamps lit and sat on the bed, looking at something in his hand. He’d been holding it this morning too. It was obviously precious to him, and while she’d picked it up and looked at it, the black rectangle didn’t seem to do anything. Nor did it look like anything precious.

He glanced up. “Did you want to see some of my world before the battery dies?”

“Yes. What is a battery?” She sat next to him.

He swiped his finger over one face of the thin rectangle and a picture came up. “This was at the end of a training exercise.” The picture changed with every swipe of his finger. “My house. Some new games I bought. Sunrise after being up all night.” He sighed. “A battery is stored energy. Here I have no way of charging my phone here. Oh, that’s my brother before he moved to Germany with his wife.” He smiled. “I may never see any of these people again.”

She didn’t know what to say. He was mourning a loss. She was trying not to mourn Nadri’s betrayal. “I didn’t bring you here.”

“I know.” He pressed a button and the screen went blank. “I might get a few more days out of it if I leave it off. Ration how often I look at them.”

“They will miss you.”

“Yes. They will be wondering where I am. How many missing persons picked up a key and vanished to another world? All those police resources spent looking, when there will never be anything to find, and no logical explanation. Even though I am here, I still don’t believe it.”

“I see the things you have.” She pointed to what he’d called a phone. “And I know you aren’t from here, even though I cannot imagine such a place existing. I saw the pictures of your people and all those rat ears and I know you aren’t one of us, but you aren’t that different either.”

He pressed his lips together. “Maybe people have crossed between our worlds before. We have stories about elves with magic. They have pointed ears like you.”

“Do the elves ever get home?”

“I don’t know. The stories are so old. They are fairy tales, stories for children that no one actually believes. Maybe there is some truth in them and there are magic doorways and other worlds…obviously there are other worlds because here I am.” He looked at her, not with the sliding glance he’d first had, but one that lingered. “You were less surprised than I was.”

“I thought you were a spy.”

“You still don’t trust me.”

“No. Would you?”

“No.”

They sat in silence for a while. He was still holding his phone, staring at the now blank face. He was obviously thinking about home.

“What if the key never works again and you must remain?” It was something that she had considered. What if it was a single journey? She couldn’t turn him out, that would be unfair—plus he had knowledge and ideas that she could never have imagined.

He closed his eyes. “I’m trying to not think about that.”

“You couldn’t be happy here?”

“I don’t know. This isn’t my home. I don’t know your customs…I don’t belong here. I will always be Rat-ears.”

“Even rats have a place. They are opportunists and scavengers.” Rats didn’t curl up and die. She didn’t think that Bryce would either.

“So, what now? What other meaningless jobs do you have for me to keep me out of the way? You call me Ambassador, but put a guard at my door. My room is in a tower with no escape. I gave my word that I would help.”

“Because you want the key.”

He nodded. “Is that not a good enough reason?”

“If Nadri stole the key, would you then help her?” Keleti held his gaze. His eyes were dark in the lamp light. With the magic in her blood she would be able to feel the truth in his words. It was the same gift that had revealed the invaders’ true intentions.

“No…while I don’t know the full history, stealing someone else’s city doesn’t seem right.”

“But that could be your only chance to get home.”

“I can see the gold in your eyes and I know what you are doing. What do you want from me? I am here. I am doing what I can. Which isn’t much.”

“It might be enough. At the moment you are the only thing that Nadri doesn’t know about the city. You are the only surprise we have. Your room is secure.” She pointed to the metal lattice on the window. “Because I don’t want her to steal you away.”

He glanced at the window. “I hadn’t thought about that. You could’ve stuck me back in the cave or kept me hidden.”

“I wanted to see how you and they reacted when you saw each other.”

His lips curved. “I passed that test then?”

“I am here.”

“I am sure that if anything happens to you, the key will be destroyed, so it is in my best interest to make sure you survive.”

She stood. “Yes, perhaps that is it.”

His head snapped up so he could look at her. “I have to think about getting home, and you have a war to win. We cannot think of anything else.”

“You allow yourself no fun? Is life always one quest followed by another?”

“Yes.” He paused. “It’s about reaching certain goals.”

“And then what?”

“Making new goals.”

She lifted her eyebrow.

And he shook his head. “Very clever. You are right. I had quit my job because I was chasing the goals and not enjoying the process.” He sighed. “I should be making the most of my time here. How often do humans get to travel to other worlds?”

Keleti didn’t say anything. That wasn’t a question for her to answer.

“Did you want to watch the first attack with me? Or you could go back to staring at your phone.” She took a step back. She was inviting him deeper into her life and city, but if he was going to leave, she didn’t want to waste his knowledge, or him. He wasn’t like any other man. They might look her in the eye, but there was still a reverence, as though she was an actual god not just descended from one.

Bryce may not always look her in the eye, but there was a defiance there, as though he didn’t trust her either and was on guard. She liked the clash and the tension. It was exciting. She hadn’t felt this kind of thrill in a long time.