The eagle, p.31
The Howler's Cry (Cross Academy Book 2), page 31
“I’m sorry,” he said again. “I’ll … I’ll let you care.” He swallowed. “About me.”
Though tears ran down her cheeks, Talon smiled. “You try so hard to keep it all out. But it’s okay to let it in, Eve.”
The words sent a jolt of both pain and pleasure through his heart and soul. They went against everything he’d lived by since he’d lost his mother.
Don’t let it in…
Now he was being told to do the exact opposite. He wasn’t sure he could, but he was certain he wanted to try.
Lord Izzy pushed the tent flap aside and ducked his head in. He glanced at Talon and paused. “I didn’t mean to interrupt—”
“I was just leaving,” she said quickly.
Izzy nodded and stepped aside so he could hold the tent open for her. He pretended to mind his business as Talon gave Diaz one last lingering look before she turned and left.
The lieutenant glowered at his old friend. “What do you want?”
Izzy smiled. It was boyish and pleasant to anyone who didn’t know him well. Blonde hair, bright, charming eyes, a heartbreaking smile, and suntanned skin. Izzy was quite possibly the cutest Priest of the Cross, but the way his bright eyes narrowed on Diaz, and the shiver of fear that skirted up the lieutenant’s spine betrayed all the kindness he exuded.
Evelyn stared at the cross in the center of Izzy’s head to keep from looking directly into his gaze. Sometimes it was hard to pretend they were merely friends looking out for each other. Izzy was his spiritual guardian. He was responsible for his seal and its maintenance. And he took it personally whenever Diaz allowed his seal to break. He wasn’t in his tent out of the kindness in his heart, he was there to make sure the lieutenant didn’t screw up and disappoint him yet again.
“I came to make sure you got healed up,” Izzy said.
Diaz finally went to his water basin and stripped himself bare. “I’m much better. Thanks.”
“There’s something else.”
“Shoot.”
“The Moon Coven.”
“Elsa Attra got away.”
Elsa was the witch who’d summoned the giant beast to Wi in the first place. Killing her would have been a huge success, capturing her would have been even better. But she’d slipped away.
Izzy nodded, folding his hands into the pockets of his black robe. “But she mentioned something interesting before everything went down.”
“Madam Yoncé.” The name of a Dame Witch—the one in charge of the coven. Since her name had been uttered by Elsa Attra, it was natural to assume Madam Yoncé was the Dame of the Moon Coven. That was excellent intel—which Diaz would send back to the Academy with a messenger hawk—but he wouldn’t be able to send any more info than that. Like why Elsa had mentioned her. And what Madam Yoncé had to do with him.
“She said she could give me what Madam Yoncé could not.” Diaz closed his eyes as soap bubbles ran from his sudsy hair and into his face.
He heard Izzy sigh across the room. “I think she was talking about your seal.”
Diaz paused. “You think Madam Yoncé has something to do with my curse?”
“I think she might be the witch who placed it on you.”
“Big gamble,” he mumbled.
Diaz would have loved to allow hope to fill his heart at the thought of finding and defeating the Dame, but the truth was that him and Izzy had gained many leads about his curse over the years and none of them had turned out to be anything more than a rumor. Diaz was almost convinced they would never find the witch who’d cursed him. But he had to admit her name sounded awfully familiar. He just wasn’t sure why.
“I could go after Elsa and chase down this lead while it’s still fresh. But…”
“But,” Diaz sighed. “I need you here.”
“Not just for the boy.” Izzy planted his bright eyes on the lieutenant. They glimmered with controlled excitement as he spoke. “There is trouble in the camp.”
“I know,” Diaz exhaled. “I wasn’t sure until the witches showed up. But now I’m certain.”
“We’ve brought the second Red Face with us.” Izzy smiled like he was happy about this. Diaz supposed, in a way, that was something to be happy about. That meant the masked assassin was with them, not hiding out in Babel or reunited with the Nine. But it also meant…
“There is a spy in our ranks. Giving away our position to the enemy,” Diaz said slowly.
Izzy nodded, looking away as he stepped back to rinse the suds from his body. “KI was being cloaked by Hope the entire time. There was no way we should have been discovered by the Moon Coven.”
There was one way.
“We’re a troop of thirty Christian soldiers travelling together as one,” Diaz explained. “We’re giving off a massive storm of Light energy. The immense amount of spiritual energy around us should have warded off enemies—the same way explosions make people flee the area. But the Moon witches are powerful. They could have picked up our energy signature and easily found us, convinced they were strong enough to take us on.”
“They were wrong,” Izzy said, a dark look on his face. Diaz caught the way his eyes narrowed to slits as he glared at the floor, undoubtedly thinking of how Elsa slipped away.
“There’s still a chance the witches didn’t trace our signature.” Diaz reached for a towel. “Darklings don’t go around searching for Light energy signatures.”
“Which means they were likely tipped off by a spy in our ranks.” Izzy ran a hand over his blonde hair and then stopped abruptly to fix the white zucchetto on his head. It should have been black in color, but Izzy’s attire was not determined by his rank in the Cross. It was defined by his power and ability. He had earned the white cap.
“I’m guessing you have a plan in place to root out the spy?” Diaz said lazily. He found a clean uniform that’d been left out for him and began dressing himself.
“I have something in mind. But it’ll involve breaking up the team.”
Evelyn focused on the buttons of his shirt. He didn’t want to split up. Travelling in smaller groups would break up their giant Light energy signature, which would make it easier for them to hide their presence from powerful enemies. But it also meant they wouldn’t be able to communicate easily or back each other up if more enemies appeared. And it was a guarantee that enemies would appear if they didn’t get rid of the spy. The second Red Face.
That meant the lieutenant had little choice.
He looked up at Izzy and wasn’t surprised to find him smiling. He could feel his potent spiritual energy coming off him in waves, like the very thought of finding the spy was getting him hyped up. Diaz smiled too. It would be nice to finally come out on top. Catching this spy would make their travels that much easier.
“Tell me your plan.”
33
Roaring
Ryko’s voice drifted into Roaring’s tent. “Grand Chief? Are you awake?”
Roaring adjusted the cloak pinned to his shoulders and pulled the tent flap back. He smiled. “Awake and ready to go.”
Ryko smiled back and then nodded at Cat who stood grinning beside him. “Today’s gonna be a busy day,” she said cheerily.
Chava agreed with a lazy bark that sounded more like a roar. Roaring bent to scratch her between the ears and then followed his councilmembers to the center of their camp. A Hunter he didn’t recognize stood over a giant cauldron stirring porridge. He was joined by Lady Ina who ladled out bowls to anyone who wanted a serving. Roaring heard her girlish laughter across the clearing.
“Good morning, Grand Chief!” Ina said excitedly. She passed him a bowl. “It’s porridge made from boiled cassava and ground nuts.”
Roaring drank the porridge down. It burned but once the searing heat passed, he licked his lips and grinned. “It’s good.”
Ina clapped her hands together. “Delightful!”
Roaring thanked the Hunter and Lady Ina before he turned to leave. The three of them walked all the way to Yamina. It took them a long while, but Roaring wanted to see every part of the village. Captain Payne had arranged a team to tear down buildings that were beyond repair; Kifu Kato and Kifa Thunder volunteered to help. The sound of their destruction rang throughout Wall Wi and Wall Nunpi.
In the outermost ring, the kids had been put to work. Wunda and her relatives worked to restore Yamina by using their earth-dancing to pack the hole with stone and hardened mud. Hemiah used his blessing to rapidly produce trees which were chopped down by a small squad of Hunters. Vinny and Montell used their blessing to make the logs light as a feather so they could carry them into the village as easily as Roaring could carry an armful of sticks.
When the lumber made it into the village, Danté Shoren arranged it into log houses. Normally, the Regiment would have required a team of at least ten men working all day for a week to build one nice cabin. But with Danté’s gift, she could easily stand thrice the size as Lord Razzle. It took her three hours of labor to build her first cabin, carrying and piling logs like she was piling bricks.
Roaring stood at the edge of the worksite, watching in silent awe as the students worked tirelessly. Not long ago, those kids had been his classmates. Now they were helping him rebuild his own home. The Academy’s report had said it would be a long project—months or even years—but as he took in all the hard work around him, the Grand Chief wasn’t so sure anymore. If he were a betting man, he’d say the village had a chance at completion before winter arrived. Less than six months from now. It was a longshot, but he liked to think of himself as a man of faith.
“They’re working hard,” Ryko said, standing beside Roaring.
He nodded, hands on his hips. “I can’t believe this.”
“Neither can I. Think of how long this would have taken without Cross Academy’s help.”
“I don’t want to think about it.” Roaring chuckled.
“We could never repay them for this,” Cat said.
“We’re not asking for repayment.”
Roaring turned to find Lord Razzle standing with a smile on his face. “I’m happy you found your way out here. The work is tough, but it will be worth it.”
Roaring nodded. “How many log houses will Danté make?”
Ryko stepped forward. “That’s what I wanted to discuss with you, Grand Chief. The outermost ring didn’t have many buildings in this area—it was mostly shrubbery since the poorer villagers didn’t have as many resources to build homes.”
Roaring frowned and turned around, peering into the village. All his life, there had been three Walls in Wi, dividing the citizens as much as protecting them. The outer rings didn’t have as much coin or as many resources as those in the inner rings. Roaring hadn’t ever thought anything of it because he’d never known any other way of life. But after spending months in Babel, he realized things could be different. They should be different.
“We’re not rebuilding the village exactly as it was before,” he announced.
Ryko sounded confused. “Grand Chief?”
“Wall Yamina will be the only Wall in Wi from now on. We aren’t repairing the other Walls—in fact, we’re tearing them down.”
Even Cat raised her brows in shock.
“Lord Chief,” Ryko started, but Roaring raised a hand.
“That’s my decision, Ryko. I’m not changing my mind on this.”
“How will we separate the poorer classes from the inner ring villagers?”
A deep crease formed on Roaring’s forehead as he scowled. He hated explaining himself. “We aren’t separating the classes anymore. Anyone can have a home in any area of the village. So long as they can afford it.”
“But… that would mean the outer ring villagers could save up and buy an inner ring home—they could buy up all the homes from the rightful inner ring families!” For some reason, he sounded panicked by this.
Roaring only smiled. “Good. That way I won’t be holed up in the center of the village anymore.” He jerked his chin at Danté who was setting the roof to a small cabin. “I could live out here, right beside the Walls I’ve sworn to protect.”
“You would be right there if anything breached Yamina.”
“Exactly.” Roaring looked at Ryko seriously. “I can’t lead the people into battle if I’m hiding behind them. I belong out here, Ryko. If you want to remain in the inner ring, then save up and buy a house there. But I’ll be living out here. As close to Yamina as possible.” He titled his head back to look up at the massive wall. “I want my home to be the first thing the villagers see when they return. I want them to know I’m here. I’m standing watch over them.”
“How noble,” Cat said sarcastically. “You’re an amazing king.”
King? Well, he supposed he wasn’t a Prince of Fire anymore—not as the Grand Chief. It was time he stopped calling himself that already. And it was time he stopped dicing up the village into rings since the Walls wouldn’t exist anymore.
“From now on, Wi will be broken into sectors. We’ll name them after some of our fallen brethren,” Roaring said with a nod. “I want the area around my cabin to be called the Wolf’s Den. After my late father, Wolf Fire.”
Although he clearly didn’t like the Grand Chief’s new plans for the village, Ryko couldn’t stop himself from nodding reverently at the mention of Kifu Wolf’s name. He had loved the Regiment leader as much as he’d loved his own father.
“That is a great name, Grand Chief,” Ryko said softly. “He would be proud of you.”
Roaring laughed. “There is no doubt in that. My wonders lie in whether the former Grand Chief, Reign of Fire, would be proud.”
“Our mother was a tough woman,” Cat said.
“That she was.”
“Grand Chief, if I may interrupt…” Lord Razzle stepped forward almost shyly, which was awkward to see—like watching a bear twiddle its fingers.
Roaring nodded. “Yes?”
“I wanted to have a word with you regarding my findings of the village.”
“You said there was much to report last night,” Roaring recalled.
“There is, but it’ll be much easier to show you instead of telling you.” He motioned behind him. “If you’ll follow me, Captain Payne is waiting in the second ring.”
“Of course,” Roaring said.
The King of Fire left Ryko and Cat with a few ideas on the layout of the Wolf’s Den. They weren’t perfect, just a few cabins and a shack for the Regiment to meet, plus a training area and a check in/checkout station for coming and going villagers. He would need to sit down and sketch up a blueprint later, but his sister and his best friend seemed to have an idea of what he wanted. They both promised to direct Danté as best they could while Roaring was away.
It took thirty minutes for Razzle and Roaring to reach Captain Payne. She greeted both men with a nod.
“About that report,” Roaring said carefully.
Razzle swallowed. “Yes. You can get the scope of the damage to the village just from looking around. What I have to report is something you must see with your own eyes.”
Roaring looked puzzled but didn’t raise any questions as Razzle turned to walk away. He followed the massive Priest in silence, heading into the dense shrubbery near a destroyed part of Wall Nunpi. The ground had been cracked and caved in near a toppling shack that’d once been a chop bar selling light soup and pounded yams. When Roaring was close enough, he realized there was a massive hole beside the shack—deep enough for him to fall into and die.
He frowned and stepped back. “Was this done during the attack?”
“Initially,” Razzle answered, then he motioned to the side of the hole where Roaring noticed steps carved into the earth. “We did some excavating when we noticed the charged energy seeping out of the hole.”
“Charged energy,” he repeated.
Now Captain Payne stepped forward. “There’s a storm of spiritual energy swirling inside that hole.”
“What’s it coming from?”
She shrugged. “That’s what we’ve been trying to find out.”
“Why haven’t you gone down and looked?”
Captain Payne and Lord Razzle exchanged looks. “We tried,” Razzle finally said. “But after about two miles of digging, we bumped into a big problem.”
“What sort of problem?”
Instead of answering, Razzle turned and marched down the stairs and into the hole. Roaring followed.
They walked in a stiff silence; each step the Grand Chief took carried him deeper underground in the winding tunnel dug by the Academy soldiers. When the light began to fade, Roaring opened his palm and breathed a flame into his hand. He caught Captain Payne glancing over her shoulder at him as the fire crackled against his skin.
“Here,” Razzle said, stopping.
Roaring walked up beside him. They were at the top of what looked like a cliff that dipped into the bowels of the cave. Nothing but darkness waited over the edge, summoning a storm of questions in the Grand Chief’s head.
“I don’t understand,” he said quietly. His words echoed around the hollow chamber.
Razzle pointed below. “Look closer.”
Roaring followed his finger, blinking into the inky shadows until he spotted something deeper below. A small splotch of orange glowing in the distance.
“What…” Roaring whispered, but as the word left his mouth, understanding burned through him. “Lava.”
Captain Payne nodded. “The Village of Wi is sitting on a volcano.”
He knew that. Almost everyone in Wi knew that.
As children, Roaring and his siblings had listened to their parents recount the legend of their tribe, how the First Flames had been sundancers so fierce, they had deliberately built their homes over a volcano just to demonstrate their power over it. It was said a mighty sunrider was born each time the volcano erupted—giant, winged beasts bursting from the lava and flames like fire formed into flesh. The greatest of the Flames had been strong enough to tame and ride the sunriders, sitting atop the creatures as one would sit on the very rays of the sun.
But that had only been a legend. A myth. A bedtime story at best.
