Wings of Tavea (7 page)

“Who lives here?” Kiora called to Alcander.

“Whoever likes to,” he answered over his shoulder. “Its rightful occupants have long since fled. A host of unpleasant things use them for shelter.”

The nearer Kiora got to the adorable little homes, the less adorable they became. It was clear they had not had a stable owner for some time. The roofs were in disrepair, holes peppering the tops of them. Doorframes sat crookedly with cobwebs laced through them. Drustan looked mournfully at the old homes.

What happened here?
Kiora thought to herself.
What am I supposed to save? It doesn’t look like anything is left.

They rode for three more hours, with Alcander and Kiora taking turns holding the bubble. She heard the pounding of the water long before they saw it. The air became thick with moisture that settled heavily in her lungs as the horses rode along the ledge at the top of the falls. A massive river flowed next to them, dropping with a roar to the valley below. Turning his horse without a word, Alcander led the way down the edge of the canyon to the base of the falls and into the river. All four horses stepped into the water, still foamy from its drop. Alcander dropped the bubble he’d been holding.

“We are within a barrier,” Alcander announced. “I assume you know about those?” he asked. Without waiting for an answer, he said to Kiora, “I can feel your power. I would like to see what you can do.” Pointing to the falls he demanded, “Part the water. We sleep behind it tonight.”

CHAPTER FOUR

The Test

KIORA WAS USED TO TESTS, although they still annoyed her. Alcander had held the bubble for the last hour and her magic had built up. She was aching for a release. Raising her hands, her magic leapt eagerly from her fingertips. Under her command, the water of the falls elegantly parted down the middle, much like a crystalline set of drapes.

Drustan laughed out loud. It was the first joy she had seen from him all day. “She did that with flare, wouldn’t you say, Alcander?”

Kiora saw the shock on Alcander’s face a second before he managed to wipe it off.

“What?” Kiora yelled to Drustan who was already riding his horse forward, howling with laughter.

“By the look on our friend’s face,” Drustan yelled back with a flourish of his hand, “I would say he was not expecting such a show.”

Kiora looked at the falls to admire her handy work. She had done a nice job. The water flowed out and to the side, clearing a majority of the stone left behind it. Smiling, she urged her horse forward, following Drustan and Emane. Alcander fell in silently behind her. They rode through the now wide-open entrance into the cavern behind the falls. Letting her magic flow unrestrained had felt wonderful. It lit up her body with a flowing sensation of spine-tingling freedom she was unable to get any other way. She wasn’t ready to lock it down. But as the horses struggled up the wet stones, Kiora reluctantly let the water fall back into place.

The sound of the horses’ hooves echoed loudly in the cavern.
Why caves?
she thought
. Ever since I discovered magic I spend half my time in caves.
The back of the cavern opened into a living area. There were ten beds, food, and supplies. The cave was well used by the look of it.

“What is this place?” Kiora asked, sliding off her horse.

“We need somewhere to hide while traveling,” Alcander answered, dismounting with inhuman grace, his feet never touching the stirrups.

Kiora wanted to ask more but decided not to push

“How long will we be staying?” Emane asked.

Alcander looked at him in a way that said he was still surprised Emane could speak. “If it’s safe, we leave in the morning. If not, we will stay until it is.”

“How will we know if it’s safe?” Kiora asked.

“I will monitor the situation while you three rest.”

“What about you, don’t you need rest?” she asked.

“None of you know what you are looking for. I don’t see a choice.” Alcander turned on his heel, leading his horse out of the cavern. “The horses stay back here,” he shot over his shoulder. “When you have unloaded what you need, there is hay and water waiting for them. I will be outside monitoring.”

Kiora, Emane, and Drustan quietly unloaded as they listened to Alcander’s footsteps disappear.

Drustan waited until he was sure that Alcander was on the other side of the falls. “I don’t think I am very fond of this Tavean,” he said, throwing his saddlebag on the floor near one of the beds.

“Me either,” Emane agreed. “What’s a Tavean?”

“It’s what he is. I am a Shifter, you’re a Human,
he
is Tavean.”

“He is a Tavean with an attitude,” Emane corrected as he set his blanket on a bed.

“That he is,” Drustan agreed.

Kiora looked back and forth between the two of them. “The world must be ending. The two of you are agreeing.”

* * *

KIORA’S HEAD HAD BARELY touched the pillow when the dreams started. Beetles scuttled over her, whispering, “Do not forget.” Her sister’s face flashed periodically, filled with hate. Emane whispered that he loved her. And then something new—the Illusionist’s black face, followed by the giant Aktoowa bird, screeching and snapping its beak. Sitting straight up in bed Kiora gasped, jerking her arm out of the Aktoowa’s way before realizing it was a dream.

Sighing, she wearily dropped her head into her hands. These nightmares followed her everywhere, and every new thing she met seemed all too willing to join in.

Envy stabbed her as she glanced at Emane and Drustan who seemed to be, as usual, sleeping peacefully. Pulling her knees up to her chest, Kiora rested her chin and allowed the pounding of the waterfall to soothe her frazzled nerves. Alcander must be exhausted, she thought. Might as well see if she could relieve him. She was up anyway.

Setting her feet on the stone, Kiora shivered. It was freezing. She slipped on her boots and tiptoed out of the room as softly as she could, making her way to the waterfall. Reaching out, she opened a small hole in the middle of the falls and stepped through.

Alcander leaned against a tree near the edge of the water, the moon highlighting the strong planes of his face. “Don’t hold back on my account.”

Kiora shyly smiled, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “I wasn’t trying to make a scene.”

“It wasn’t a scene,” Alcander clarified. “It was a surprise.”

Picking her way across the rocks, Kiora sat on the ground a fair distance from Alcander. “What were you expecting?”

“Closer to what you just did,” he said, nodding at the falls.

“Oh.” Kiora fiddled with the grass. “I’ll try to rein it in next time.”

“Don’t,” Alcander said, crossing his arms. “I would like to see what you can do. You have more power than I realized,” he admitted.

Kiora shrugged, jerking a blade of grass out before tossing it aside. “I think I have more than
I
realize. It’s all so new, I can’t keep up with myself.”

“New?” Alcander’s eyebrows rose.

“I didn’t know magic existed until six or seven weeks ago.” Kiora kept her head down, until Alcander’s silence finally forced her to look up. He was staring at her with those crystal blue eyes, and not pleasantly.

He scoffed. “How is that possible?”

Kiora stared back, swallowing her rising irritation. “I told you I would explain what I was when you were ready to know.”

Alcander skimmed over her statement. “What else can you do?”

Kiora blushed a bright red. “I haven’t found much that I can’t do.”

Alcander’s head tilted quizzically to the side. “You are embarrassed?”

“A little.”

“Why?”

“I don’t like talking about myself,” she said, tucking the same piece of hair behind her ear and furiously attacking the grass, her fingers picking and pulling at the strands. Something about his piercing gaze sent nervous butterflies rolling through her stomach.

“Is it less embarrassing for you to admit flaws rather than strengths?” Alcander asked peevishly. “What
can’t
you do?”

“I can’t heal.”

“What else?”

“That’s it so far.”

Alcander’s voice turned steely. “You expect me to believe you can control all four elements?”

She looked up, caught off guard by his tone. “Why does that make you angry?”

Something flared behind his eyes. Leaning forward he said, “I do not like being lied to.”

Kiora stood, trying to breath past the lump in her throat. “I believe you are the one who told me you’re not narrow-minded,” she snapped.

Coming out here was a mistake; she should have stayed inside and stared at the ceiling. Shaking her head she turned to leave.

“Prove it,” came the challenge from behind her.

Kiora clenched her fists. “Why? You can feel my thread.” She spun to meet Alcander’s stare.

His flaring eyes softened slightly. “You are angry because I asked you to prove it. That leads me to believe you cannot.”

“I do not need to prove myself. You have not shown me anything of your abilities either. I know nothing about you.” Alcander raised his eyebrows, crossing his arms in a challenge. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath in through her nose. “I am tired of being tested, that is all.”

“How old are you?”

Kiora’s eyes fluttered open. “What?”

“You said you have known of magic for less than a year. How old are you?”

“Almost seventeen.”

He sneered, falling back against the tree. “You are but a child.”

Kiora rolled her eyes. “That’s what they tell me.”

Alcander took a few steps closer, and Kiora forced herself to hold her ground under his advance. Stopping in front of her, Alcander crossed his arms again. He wore a smirk that looked out of place on his distinguished face. Something about the way his mouth turned to one side didn’t match the hard angles of his nose and cheekbones.

“You show me that you can control all four elements, and I will believe whatever you tell me.”

“Fine,” Kiora said, placing her hands on her hips. “How big of a show would you like, Alcander?”

“Interesting attitude change for one claiming such embarrassment,” he observed, the smirk firmly in place.

Kiora’s hands formed fists at her side. Huffing, she turned away from him, taking two steps before whirling back. She kept her eyes locked on his while she lifted two hands to the sky. The magic inside her flowed eagerly to her fingertips, and as her eyes slid from Alcander’s to the clear sky above she felt the first rain drop on her face. Willing it, she called down more. The rain increased until she could hardly see Alcander through the thick grey sheet of water. Waving her hand, she cut off the flow and the rain ceased abruptly, the moon bright in the sky again.

Turning, she extended her other hand, pulling the wind out of the east. It came, roaring past her and slamming into Alcander. He stumbled backwards a good two steps before righting himself. She squinted as her hair whipped across her face. Pulling both arms together, she forced the wind into a small funnel cloud and sent it zipping around the base of the falls, sucking up water as it went. The funnel collapsed when she closed her fist. Her hair fell back down over her shoulders.

Alcander’s smirk was gone.

Stalking past him she knelt on the bank of the river. Touching her fingers to the water, she sent rivulets of flame racing across the top of the unburnable surface. With a glance over her shoulder at Alcander, Kiora used her other hand to create a wave—pulling it up and over the top of the fire, extinguishing it. She scanned the other bank, breathing hard as the magic coursed though her. Catching sight of what she needed she thrust her hand out, concentrating on several of the larger rocks embedded in the bank. The ground rumbled, sending dirt pouring into the water as the rocks ripped themselves free and rose into the air. Pulling her arm across her body the rocks followed, flying past the falls and landing neatly at her feet.

Kiora breathed in deeply, closing her eyes. It felt amazing. She rarely allowed herself to open up like that. Her body tingled with the rush of magic flowing freely through her. The hard part was shutting it off. Her fingers were actually twinkling with power. They’ve never done that before, she thought, tilting her head to examine them. With a sigh of regret she dropped her hands to her sides, closing down the magic.

She stared out at the water for a minute, trying to calm her breathing. When she turned to Alcander, he stared at her with a look she could not decipher. His chest heaved, but the rest of his body was rigid. His eyes held the most emotion she had seen in them, although she could not tell if it was hatred or fear. The good feeling from using her magic slipped away. Suddenly, Kiora had no desire to finish this conversation. She split the water of the falls and sprinted back to her bed.

She could feel Alcander following her, slowly and deliberately. Sliding to a stop just short of the room where the others were sleeping, she turned to face him. He walked towards her, his eyes glued to the ground in front of him.

“What?” Kiora demanded, her legs shaking. “Was that not enough proof for you?” Her voice bounced off the cave walls. She flinched—it was too loud. She heard Emane stirring and felt his wave of concern.

Stopping in front of Kiora, Alcander finally looked up. “Who are you?”

“Are you asking me because you are ready to know or because you are angry?” Kiora asked, swiping hair out of her face. She felt tears trying to form but refused to let them come.

He stepped even closer, leaning nearly over the top of her. “I am asking you because I need to know.”

Emane came out of the room, shirtless. “What is going on?”

“Who are you?” Alcander nearly yelled, his voice cracking.

“Hey!” Emane said, pushing his way between Kiora and Alcander. “Leave her alone.”

Alcander’s eyes widened at the sight of the green metal snake wrapped around Emane’s arm. “Where did you get that?”

“That is none of your concern,” Emane said tightly. “I am telling you, leave her alone.”

“What are you?” Alcander yelled to Kiora over Emane’s shoulder, his cool facade crumbling.