As emperor, Ciera was already considered a Defender, but I had to swear an oath for myself and on behalf of Rekala, Tiaro and Fyschs. The High Commander himself took my vows in the Dome of Gathering. Sarlice, Kestric and Thita were also sworn in as Defenders, joining a regiment of one thousand humans: some with, some without kin. There were 17 regiments in Centan alone and a total of 57,000 Defenders across the nation. Thousands had died at Lokshole and Lander’s Bay already, but as far as Reltic-Tanzan wars went, this one was only beginning. Due to the small number of Anzaii, there was only one Anzaii strike force but, as Queen Emyla had told me, there were some Anzaii scattered throughout the Defender regiments.
Later in the evening the strike force gathered in a roped off area outside the Dome of Gathering. Ciera and I were at the centre of the group, watching as the warriors checked their equipment and sharpened their weapons. Other Tanzans attached water botas and sacks of food to each skyearl’s saddle. Only food for the humans was required. The skyearls were feeding now on freshly cut saplings, wet rushes and piles of leaves. After this feed, they would not require food again for several days. Then it was simply a matter of finding some nutritious vegetation.
I had been introduced to most of the warriors and their skyearls. Their names were a jumble in my mind. I hoped I would learn to speak to other skyearls through the waves soon, if only to be able to remind myself what all their names were.
A breeze made the garden torches gutter and billow, stressing the banners that lined the causeway until I thought they would tear and fly away. The blue lanterns in the trees swung dangerously. A number of them had gone out, leaving sections of the garden in shadow. I shivered. It was well after midnight and my body had that aching fatigue that usually meant I needed a long sleep.
Rekala’s side was pressed against my legs and she circled me, panting and chuffing nervously. Her tail flicked against my chest and back each time she circled.
‘I don’t want you to go. I don’t want you to go,’ she said over and over.
I patted her forehead each time she came around and tried to send calm through the waves, knowing of no other way to reassure her. I didn’t like us being parted from each other any more than she did. Eventually she lay down on her stomach and wrapped one paw around my boot.
Sarlice entered the courtyard from the direction of the canals. She strode toward me, carrying my worn travel pack. She handed it to me and then threw a black leather and fleece coat over my shoulders. As I slid my arms into it, I realised it was probably more expensive than any garment I had ever owned.
‘Where did you get this from?’ I asked in amazement.
‘I bought it for you,’ she said simply.
‘You didn’t have to do that.’
She looked me in the eyes. ‘It’s the least I can do. This coat will keep you warm when you’re up in the sky.’
She fastened it down my chest with a dozen silver catches embossed with little skyearls. I watched the light glinting off her hair and wondered at the beating of my heart. Her hands against my chest were like wildfire.
Hesitantly, I reached out and touched her face with the backs of my fingers. She paused, closing her eyes. We were about the same height now. The noise and movement continued around us, but for all I cared, we might have been standing alone. The waves hushed around me; it was as if I’d drawn an invisible curtain down around the two of us.
‘I thought we had no coin,’ I said.
She opened her eyes and gave me a small smile. ‘I traded most of those useless trinkets Minac gave us.’ She chuckled awkwardly.
‘Thank you,’ I said quietly, amazed that she hadn’t pulled away. ‘You joined the Defenders. Do you think they will let you take the horses back with the Rada-kin to Lantaid?’ If only she could be safe, I thought.
Sarlice looked up. ‘I will be safe enough.’
My breath caught as I realised I had projected my thoughts into her mind. Were my Anzaii abilities growing that quickly? Or had we become so close that it was easy for me to connect with her in the waves? I looked deeply into her eyes realising she had opened her mind to me. Once I had initiated contact, she was able to sense me like she sensed her kin. Thoughts shuffled through my mind—some familiar, some foreign.
Sarlice continued to look into my eyes, mouth parted as if she was about to say something. Feelings of uncertainty and self-doubt clouded my mind. These patterns of thought were strange to me. Dozens of questions and issues came and went in the space of a few seconds. There was even a flash of Sarlice in a dress dancing… dancing… dancing with me.
I dared to pull her to me, pressing my cheek against hers and hugging her tightly. She did not resist. My eyes closed as I felt a rush of pure joy. This was right, more right than it had ever been with Lira. Sarlice’s arms encircled me, pulling our bodies closer. I wanted to stay there forever, I wanted to tell her how I felt, I wanted so many things. But Ciera’s roar rang out and the members of the strike force were mounting up.
Sarlice and Rekala clung to me, willing me to stay. I squeezed Sarlice tight, stroked her face and broke away. Rekala batted my leg with her paw so I crouched down and threw my arms around her.
‘Keep Sarlice safe,’ I implored her. ‘And I’ll see you again soon.’
‘Don’t go, don’t go!’ was all she could say. But I had to.
Skyearls took flight all around us.
Ciera’s roar boomed more loudly.
Agonisingly, Sarlice whispered farewell. She rested one hand on Rekala’s shoulder and Kestric was there attempting to console the two of them. My heart felt like it was tearing in two.
Ciera’s impatience barrelled into me through the waves. ‘I should be in the lead, Talon.’
I hoisted my travel pack, waved and ran for my Sleffion-kin. Using the handholds that were built into his armour and battle-seat, I climbed up onto his back. Fumbling with the buckles, I strapped the pack behind me and fastened myself into the battle-seat. Ciera spread his magnificent wings and crouched low. I waved to Sarlice and Rekala one last time and caught my breath as Ciera burst upwards. Cold air rushed around me, chilling me despite the warmth of Sarlice’s gift.
Darkness closed in around us and the air brushed over us, threatening to smear us across the sky. Far below were the foamy white cascades of the River Jarvi and the last few settlements of Hree. Ciera and the other skyearls sped through the moonlit sky, hurried by the call of their fellows who were dying far away.
Chapter Ten—Condii
W
e flew for ten hours, landing every two or three for a break. Even the padding in Ciera’s enormous battle-seat was not enough to keep me comfortable for that length of time. I stretched and wriggled, trying to keep my feet and my behind awake. Sarlice’s face and the feel of her body against me was my mind’s constant companion. I wanted her, more than I had ever wanted anything. I blocked out both Ciera and Tiaro as I contemplated whether our relationship had changed. Had she simply been hugging me in friendship? In the end I gave up trying to figure it out and accepted the diversion of sleep, sagging in my harness.
When we finally reached the outskirts of Condii, I was dozing lightly with an unpleasant twinge in my back. The breeze warmed as we descended, waking me—I rubbed my eyes and opened them to the shining vista of early afternoon. Below us were the patterns of agriculture, dark green fitting into light green like pieces in a puzzle. The great, flat expanse of farmland was dotted with jutting karst towers, windswept limestone topped with sparse foliage. From up in the sky the karst towers seemed like game pieces on a gigantic board-game.
To the north, houses cluttered the foothills of a larger slope. They were almost all made of white and red bricks with black-tile roofs. Tyba and Amadeus wheeled west, using the promontories and low-lying clouds as cover. The rest of the team flew after them, sinking lower and following a tiny stream. Ciera had been here before, but even the memory of tasty saplings did not lighten his mood. He emitted a growl of anticipation as the strike force touched down.
Ciera’s wings beat the air, allowing his feet to make only a soft crunching sound as they landed on the dirt road near an old stone bridge. I staggered down from Ciera’s back and shook my legs. Across the other side of the stream was a small castle with many arches, pillars and balconies made of a mysterious, grey-blue substance.
‘Home of the Chief Architect,’ Tyba informed me. ‘The Zeikas have not been here yet.’
Ciera’s tail lashed, knocking over several trees. Some of the humans were startled, but nobody commented. The group fell silent. Beyond the sounds of feathered wings being shaken and bellies rumbling were the voices of jungle crickets and strange animal calls. Leaves rustled in a gentle breeze.
A group of skyearls, who hadn’t eaten their fill earlier, moved into the forest to graze. The rest assisted us to set up a large shelter and cookfire. Ciera took a dozen water sacks down to the river on his back and hauled them back full. It would have taken humans an hour to gather as much water.
‘Why aren’t we going into the city?’ I asked Tyba.
‘The Condiites told us to make our camp here on the north side of the city. The Zeika legions have, so far, only approached from the south to attack the town. It appears they are avoiding the River Jarvi. When the Condiites call us, we will fly to their aid, surprising the Zeikas.’
‘And what are we going to do?’
‘Tactical warfare,’ he replied, clasping me by the shoulder. ‘We will hide in the clouds above the battle, striking only at the right moment.
‘When enough Zeika conjurations are close to our position, the Anzaii in our group will dispel them. It is the task of the rest of the strike force to protect the Anzaii if our position is discovered.’
‘I have dispelled before,’ I sighed, ‘though I’m really not very sure of myself.’
‘You only need to be sure of Krii,’ Tiaro corrected me.
‘What about the people who are fighting right now?’ I began. ‘What are we going to do to help them?’
Ciera’s tail lashed. ‘For now, we are expected to stand by as our comrades are slaughtered.’
I opened my mouth and closed it again.
Tyba’s shoulders sagged. ‘This plan was formulated six months ago, when the Defenders contemplated the possibility of a large increase in Zeika ranks. The strike force is too valuable to throw at the main Zeika army. It must be deployed carefully and strategically.’
‘So you knew that Reltland’s army was growing?’
‘It seemed likely,’ he replied. ‘You see, because initiated Zeikas do not age, their army continually swells. It becomes more cumbersome and more costly, but also more powerful. For each year that passes dozens of Zeika sorcerers progress in rank. Zeikas become ‘Conjurers’ at the fourth rank, which is apparently a difficult achievement. We had hoped Bal Harar was no longer interested in seizing Tanza, that he had gained the land he needed for crops and industry in Watercrag.’
‘It is genocide,’ Ciera said, ‘against all Kriites.’
I rested my forehead in my hands and rubbed my temples. I looked up when Tyba patted me on the shoulder. A man had approached through the strike force who I hadn’t seen before.
‘This is Chief Architect Furlorny,’ Tyba said.
‘My prince,’ Furlorny said, with a dip of his head.
‘Furlorny, I’d like you to meet Astor Talon.’
‘Trees! But you’re young for an Astor,’ Furlorny said.
I didn’t know what to say to that so I held my tongue. Furlorny led Tyba away to discuss tactics with some others nearby, but I was too distracted to join in. Ciera’s mind was abuzz with conversation. I could ‘hear’ only his words, but the meaning behind all that was said to him by other Sleffion was clear. A few miles away there was a pitched battle. More Tanzans were dying by the minute, yet we could not strike too soon or all could be lost. After a ten hour flight, there was strength to be regained by skyearls and people alike. A young man tapped me on the shoulder from behind.
‘Astor,’ he said, ‘we all need to eat and then rest for a bit. Here.’
The young man handed me a deep trencher of gromvi stew and a platter of smoky boiled vegetables and cheese. I accepted the food gratefully and sat down on the ground, leaning against a treestump.
Another strike force member served food to the prince. I was relieved that we would have this opportunity to recover, but, at the same time, Ciera’s guilt washed into mine and I grieved for the unknown people who were dying for this land. Tyba gestured for a barrel to be brought over for him to sit on and he ate ravenously.
As I was eating I watched the young man who had served me. As far as I could tell, he hadn’t eaten anything himself yet. Instead, he was busy sweeping out the newly erected pavilion where we would all sleep. He unpacked blankets and ground mats from the vast stores that had been carried by Ciera, Amadeus and the other large skyearls in the strike force. He poured oil into clay lanterns and lit them. A few others tended a fire nearby, cooking more stew for their comrades. I could almost feel their hunger burning through the waves.
‘That’s Jett,’ Ciera told me. ‘He grew up near here in Q’Villa with the quarry workers. It’s hard work down there.’
Eventually the boy joined me, bringing a second helping for me as well as a far-less-heaped plate for himself. His Rada-kin, a viperjay named Naltoch, landed on his shoulder and Jett fed the bird a scrap of meat. I fought to keep my distaste for the creature hidden.
‘I’m Talon. What’s your name?’ I asked him even though I already knew.
He wiped his hands on his leggings and then presented me with the traditional Tanzan greeting. I offered him my hand and showed him how people in the Upper World shook hands when they were introduced.
‘Sorry, Astor, sir,’ he said between mouthfuls. ‘I’m Jett. We just assume you know who we are…’ He lowered his voice. ‘There are some Anzaii in the group who can converse with other peoples’ kin. And if their own or others’ kin don’t tell them what they need to know, there are some who can read people’s minds too!’