Toward dawning light, p.14
Toward Dawning Light, page 14
The two saluted the commander, then went into the main room behind them. Astrea almost groaned. Somehow, talking with Lucian alone gave her the sense that something was wrong.
“What’s going on?” she asked as Lucian half closed the door.
“It seems your . . . offer . . . to that void mage worked,” Lucian said.
“What?”
“She finally gave us some information. She says Nazarov has been looking for a major source of aetherium. The Badlands didn’t seem to pan out for him, so now he’s searching elsewhere.”
“Did she say how bad things went for him in Helosia?”
“Bad enough that many more are starting to question his leadership,” said Lucian. “She says they aren’t the only ones willing to listen to what you have to offer.”
Based on what Theo had explained in the Badlands, about how Nazarov was trying to find ways to legitimize his rule, Astrea almost wasn’t surprised by this new revelation.
“You think she’s telling the truth?”
“She told me where she knew Nazarov was last headed.” When Astrea gestured for him to continue, Lucian said, “He was going to Zaikud in search of reinforcements and supplies before beginning the rest of his search.”
“Does she know where he’s going to search?”
“Islands on the northern coast.”
Astrea scrubbed at her face. “Alright, when did he go to Zaikud?”
“A few days ago, according to that woman.”
“So, what, we go to these islands and hope we get there first?”
“That would be the next logical step, but there’s one problem.”
“Of course there’s a problem,” Astrea muttered.
“She can’t tell us which islands.”
Her eyes widened. “So we have to search them all?”
“We need to figure out how to split up the coalition forces to cover as much ground as safely as possible.”
Unwelcome and unexpected tears slid down Astrea’s cheeks. Now they had to go scout an untold number of islands in an attempt to find aetherium and Nazarov? How were they even supposed to do that? They didn’t have many Stargazers at their disposal . . .
“Astrea?” Lucian asked gently.
Wiping at her cheeks, she muttered, “Sorry, I’m tired.”
“I know it’s not only that. I can see it.”
“Of course you can.”
“I don’t mean to intrude or overstep . . . but Varojin was feeling just as badly earlier.”
“You sensed this from him?” Astrea whispered. Jin had been so closed off from her. Not quite ignoring her but certainly not engaging. And yet he was open to Lucian?
“Only for a few seconds. You’ve both been off the last couple of days.”
Lucian was the last person Astrea wanted to talk to about this, yet she found herself saying, “We had a disagreement about how much I should be involved right now. He thinks I should still be recovering.”
“Could he be right?” In the glow of his starlight, Lucian’s expression was almost soft. Almost. Almost like how Saros used to look at her.
“Shouldn’t he be recovering too, then?” Astrea asked, wiping away more tears. “He nearly died.”
“Perhaps you’re both right.”
As if Astrea didn’t already know that.
“Have you talked about it?” Lucian asked.
“What’s there to say?”
“Digging your heels in isn’t going to get you anywhere.”
No, it wouldn’t, but since when was Commander Lucian Astor the epitome of compromise and flexibility?
Astrea huffed. Lucian may have been looking at her the same way Saros used to, but she was acting just like Saros. Avoiding a hard conversation, just as she had earlier in the year before they knew about the Paragon. Letting it hurt not just her relationship with Jin but letting it hurt herself. And Jin was falling back into his old ways, that role of protector he seemed desperate to play.
How easy it was to revisit old patterns. It was familiar, almost comforting in a strange way despite how much it also hurt. Comforting to fall back on the known instead of moving forward into the darkness stretching out before them.
If only they could go back to the summer, warn themselves about all that they would face. Set themselves up for success, avoid failure after failure after failure.
When Lucian set his hand on Astrea’s forearm, she startled.
“You should both take some time,” Lucian said. “Talk. Rest. You’ve barely had a chance to grieve.”
“I’ll grieve when this is done.”
With a heavy sigh, Lucian said, “I know time is a luxury we don’t have, but I’m ordering you to take a break while the general and I work some things out. Some things cannot wait, Astrea. Take it from me.”
Astrea frowned. “What does that mean?”
“There are many people I’ve hurt and lost because I refused to take a step back and process what I’d—what we’d—been through. I either walked away or continued with blinders on. And despite my earlier concerns, you and Varojin are a good pair. Good people. I don’t want to see you lose each other before you’ve even had a chance to get started.”
Astrea didn’t think she and Jin were losing each other because of one argument, but she took Lucian’s point. If they started shutting each other out now, when things were this hard, then what? Where would that leave them?
“What about finding these islands and finding Theo?” she asked.
“You have dozens of people here to help you. People who, frankly, need to pull their own weight if we’re going to move forward with this alliance. Let us do what we do best, and you can gather yourselves enough for what’s to come.”
Astrea hated the thought of taking a break at all. But the commander was right. She needed to really sit with what she’d lost, what her friends had lost. She couldn’t ignore the wound festering deep within her. It may not ever go away, but trying to grit her teeth and bear the pain would only make the coming weeks and months that much harder.
“Alright,” she said. “I will. But you might have to order Jin to do the same.”
Lucian actually smiled, a real, genuine smile. “If it comes to that, I will.”
Chapter 15
With twilight settling over the northern reaches of the country and the military leadership finally situated and ready to take over the fortress, it was time for Astrea and the rest of them to leave. Two airships were waiting down in the empty field near the cliffside, one which would be used to take the prisoners and the other which would take the team. The one with the prisoners was nearly loaded up and ready to depart, bound for Talmaris.
Astrea fiddled with the end of her braid as she stared down at that airship through one of the narrow windows. Lights glowed within, and after a few more moments, it lifted off the ground and ascended into the sky.
Despite Lucian’s orders for her to take a break, Astrea had spent the rest of the afternoon searching the peculiar building for any more traces of the void language or something that might be remotely useful. She, Adi, and Civan had found a few words haphazardly carved into some of the columns and in doorways, but nothing that seemed important. Still, it would be worth bringing to Noemi and Tomas.
And now that the task was almost done, Astrea tried to make herself relax. Closing her eyes, she pushed her shoulders down and back. The air around her crackled with energy, everything from heady anticipation to prickling anxiety to grating frustration. She couldn’t wait until they were up in the air and she could stop being on watch. Lucian had left with the prisoners, and despite the other Lightbringers around, Astrea couldn’t bring herself to pull her barrier in.
“Az?” Lennor asked as she came up from behind.
Astrea glanced back. Lennor’s shoulders were bunched up near her ears, almost like she was afraid. But nothing flared in her aura.
“Is it time to go?” Astrea asked.
“Yeah, Jin sent me to get you.”
Jin really couldn’t come over himself to tell her? To talk about this?
Falling into step with Lennor, the women wove their way through the small groups of soldiers until they found Adi, Civan, and Marko. Jin was still a ways off, speaking with Zephyrine and the corporal. He and his team would be staying to help keep watch for any stray Paragon that might show up.
“We should get down there and get settled,” Adi said, nudging both Astrea and Lennor toward the door to the tunnel that would take them back outside.
Astrea moved without any protest. The most she did was summon her light over her palm despite Adi’s flashlight helping guide their way through the pitch-dark tunnel. Even that small use of her magic made her temples pulse, like she’d overextended herself. And she probably had. The incident in the Badlands had only been a few weeks before. Was that enough time to truly recover from whatever the void magic had done to her body?
They’d been walking for what felt like forever when Civan asked, “Are Jin and Zephyrine coming?”
“Yeah,” Adi said. “They wanted to make sure the corporal’s got everything under control.”
“This feels too easy,” Civan said.
Lennor nudged him in the ribs. “Take the win for once, alright?”
“I’m just saying,” he replied. “These void mages happen to believe Astrea is their true leader and easily turn information over to us?”
“I wouldn’t call it easy,” Marko said. “Lucian crossed some lines to get them to finally comply.”
“He said my offer is what convinced them to eventually talk,” Astrea said.
Marko shrugged. “Your offer . . . a little pressure from his souleating.”
Cold horror prickled Astrea’s scalp. She’d known they’d be questioned, but that? “No . . .”
“This is war,” Marko said matter-of-factly. “It’s hardly the worst thing he could’ve done.”
Astrea hated this. Hated all of it.
There Lucian had been, just a couple of hours before, acting as if Astrea’s words had made the difference. Acting so kindly toward her, understanding. Gentle. After he’d done the unthinkable to those mages.
Sure, those void mages weren’t exactly their allies, but to do that to another person for information? Not out of self-defense or to preserve the lives of the team?
It didn’t seem right. Not even when they desperately needed whatever information they would get. Maybe that was naive, but it still made Astrea’s stomach churn.
“Was Jin in the room when he did it?” she managed to ask.
“He waited until Jin and Zephyrine were gone.”
That almost made it worse, knowing that Lucian knew where Jin stood on the issue. That he waited until Jin was gone so that he could cross that line without any pressure to do otherwise.
To think that Marko was seemingly okay with it, too . . .
A few lights at the end of the tunnel grew brighter, Novarian soldiers with flashlights. As they passed by, Adi handed off his flashlight, and then they were out the door and back in the cold night air. Astrea shivered as a violent wind blew through the field. It howled through the nearby forest with such fierceness that it made the hairs on Astrea’s neck stand on end.
Lennor stopped in her tracks and tilted her head slightly to one side. “That’s not natural,” she almost whispered. The ground rumbled a moment later.
“Someone should’ve radioed that in already . . .” Marko shook his head. “Get to that ship now,” he snapped, shoving Astrea and Adi that way at the same time. “Len, with me.”
“Wait—” Astrea started. Why hadn’t the coalition forces radioed in about an attack? It had to be an attack, right?
Adi yanked on her arm and dragged her through the tall, dry grass. A thunderous boom exploded in the forest, quickly followed by a mix of flames and clouds. Civan sprinted after Lennor and Marko, who were nearing the edge of the forest.
Astrea tried to pull away from Adi with little success. “We have to help them!”
“They’ll be fine.” His footsteps never faltered, not even when Astrea stumbled. “My priority is getting you on that ship.”
“They need to get on that ship!”
And what about Jin? Astrea tried turning around to look for him but saw no sign of her husband. It was just a lot of Novarian soldiers scrambling out of the tunnel, gray confusion flashing around most of their heads.
Adi ignored her continued protests as he practically dragged her to the waiting airship. The lights were on, and a shadowy figure moved around inside. Red rage and determination flared around them as they moved toward the airship’s open door. Someone had to have broken through the coalition’s line.
Astrea pulled back so hard against Adi’s grip that they both stumbled, almost falling.
“What the skies is wrong with you?” Adi shouted at her.
“They’re not on our side!” she screamed over the next howl of wind, so strong it nearly knocked her over.
The person running out of the airship threw something toward them. It glinted in the sun’s last rays. Earth shot up out of the ground, blocking Astrea and Adi just as something hit the shield with a solid thunk.
“Get behind me,” Adi hissed.
Astrea followed his orders.
She pivoted backward as he did, away from their assailant. Earth and metal clashed together, and as Astrea tried to get a better look, she caught flashes of dark green fabric amid the blue water and brown earth smashing into each other. The Zaikudi? Was that who was attacking them? Was Nazarov with them? She couldn’t sense void mages, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t out of her range . . .
Astrea took a few steps back from Adi, closer and closer to the cliff face. Her back bumped against rock. There was no place else for her to go.
Adi blocked most of her line of sight with his wide frame. Red anger and rusty annoyance and green focus swirled in the air, visible even around her human shield. Throwing her hands out in front of her, Astrea snatched the colors. Pain rattled around in her sternum. Her muscles trembled, like she was already far past her limits. She yanked back hard, making their assailant stumble.
Adi closed the space between him and their attacker—definitely Zaikudi based on that dark green uniform. As Adi grabbed the Zaikudi soldier by their shirt and yanked them off the ground, Astrea pushed all those negative emotions back into them. Her veins burned hot and cold. Her lungs tightened. The Zaikudi soldier roared, thrashing about in Adi’s grasp, but he didn’t let them go.
Earth shot up, ensnaring the enemy soldier’s legs first, then their arms. They roared again, straining against their new bindings.
Astrea’s chest heaved. She could barely make out more green uniforms across the field, most of them melding into the darkness and swarm of Novarians. Still no sign of Jin or Zephyrine. Where were they?
Adi said something in broken Zaikudi. Astrea hesitated, watching as he glared at the man who had attacked them. She didn’t speak Zaikudi, but even she knew the next words out of their enemy’s mouth dripped with venom. Gray hate swirled around his head in a thick storm cloud, obscuring his bronze skin and dark brown hair.
“What’s he saying?” Astrea asked Adi.
“I . . . don’t know.”
He didn’t know? How could he not know? Even if his Zaikudi wasn’t the best?
“What do you mean—”
Heat seared Astrea’s skin. Flinching, she flung her hands out in front of her. Starlight sparked to life, knitting together into a tight, dense shield wide enough for her and Adi.
Up ahead and approaching fast was another green-clad Zaikudi. Fire danced over their hands, snaking through the grass and catching the field on fire.
Adi sidestepped Astrea’s shield and sprinted ahead. The earth rumbled, then pieces of burning grass and earth shot back toward the Fireweaver.
Astrea froze. She couldn’t do anything here. Nothing helpful. That Zaikudi had no emotions to pull from, no energy she could find. They were a heavy, steady wall amid the growing chaos.
Hot flames blasted through the air in a cone so wide that it not only caught on the grass but went over Astrea’s head, too. Her shield protected her, and through its shimmering glow, she found Adi hiding behind a shield of his own. The front of it burned.
They needed Civan or Lennor, some kind of—
The fire morphed and moved, almost like water getting sucked back out to sea. Astrea’s arms trembled with the effort of tightening her shield around herself like a cocoon, ready for the next blow that never came.
Jin sprinted past her, the enemy’s fire twisting and twisting into a fiery rope as he ran. A gale gusted through the field, putting out the remnants of burning grass. Adi’s shield dropped. He joined Jin, both advancing on the Zaikudi Fireweaver, forcing their retreat.
But they weren’t fast enough, strong enough. Not with Jin there to keep ripping control of their flames away. Every time the Zaikudi tried to summon fire, it literally funneled toward Jin, only for him to throw it back at them.
Astrea managed to look away right before pain blossomed between her ribs and up into her heart. That Zaikudi’s heavy wall faded away into nothingness. They were dead.
“Come on.” Zephyrine’s warm voice made Astrea startle. “Go with Jin and Adi. I’ll get the others.”
The white-haired general ran off before Astrea could even dismiss her shield. She looked tentatively at the man still trapped in Adi’s earthen prison, then across the field. The Novarians seemed to have the situation under control and were rounding up the Zaikudi who hadn’t fallen during battle. They could deal with this man, too.
Forcing herself forward, Astrea caught up to where Adi and Jin were waiting for her. They made a beeline for the waiting airship. As soon as they were inside, Adi and Jin started talking in quick half sentences, something about checking for any tampering on instruments and anything else that Zaikudi Tidebacker might’ve done.
Having Cressida there would’ve been nice. She was so quick to figure things out like that, but—
Pain stung Astrea’s cheeks, her arms, her wrist, her ankle. Marko, Lennor, and Civan launched themselves into the ship, all of them covered in soot and scrapes.
