Alliance (38 page)

The connection dissolved, and Nykin opened his eyes, not realizing he’d shut them.

“What is it?” Selene asked, as she and Jaken looked at him expectantly. “Nykin?”

Nykin let go of Selene’s hand and rubbed the silver cuff on his wrist. “It was Lerran.” Selene gasped but didn’t interrupt him. “He said he and Ryneq are in the cells, along with Peros and Nysad.”

“Are they all right?”

“Yes, I think so. For now anyway, although he said Peros was hurt.”

Jaken looked over to where their three dragons had landed and sighed. “We need to go back inside and inform the queen.”

Nykin patted him on the shoulder. “You and Selene stay here. There’s no need for us all to go.” He sent his apologies to Fimor, and turned to head down the beach toward the steps.

S
IX
DAYS
after the dragon’s blood had been collected, the
egrath
arrived in Alel, with King Seran’s demands. Unsurprisingly they wanted all the dragons to return to the Eyrie. They’d given them two whole days to get back to Alel after receiving the letter. Then Lerran would die, followed by Nysad, and finally Ryneq. The threats were to be expected, but Nykin found it odd that they’d only requested two dragons to land at first, though.

He stared at the letter Ahlyria handed to him. “If the witch tries to break the bond between the first dragon and rider, does she think the others are just going to stand by and watch? I don’t understand?”

“Nor do I, Nykin.” Ahlyria paced in front of the large window in her quarters. “But whatever her reasoning, this works in our favor. The other riders can take the elves to the tunnel entrance, and it won’t matter when the elves drop the shield hiding them. The witch will be expecting them anyway. Have you decided who will accompany you to the landing caves?”

Nykin nodded. “Yes, I have.” The decision had been one of the easiest so far.

T
HE
AMULETS
and the
Ka’reth Magri
were ready in the early hours of the morning, two days later. They had until sunset that night to get to Torsere, and the royal residence was a hive of activity, even though it remained dark outside.

All the riders gathered in the reception hall, along with the elves chosen to accompany them. Prince Morkryn and Princess Cerylea would remain in Alel, Cerylea’s connection to the magic not yet strong enough for her to leave. Ahlyria and Nihathyl watched as the elders handed out the finished amulets.

Nykin stood in front of Cahlith, and waited for her to hand him both his amulet and the
Ka’reth Magri
.

“Take the amulet, Nykin, and wear it. There is still a chance this is a trap the witch has set. But if it is not, you must take it off for the
magic catcher
to work.” She waited until Nykin placed the green pendant around his neck and then placed the smooth black stone in his palm. “May the magic of the forest keep you safe.”

Nykin had already contacted Lerran, letting him know their plans, but since he hadn’t seen either the witch or Seran since the
egrath
had been sent, Lerran had no idea where they would be when the rescue began. For now, they assumed they’d remain in the cells. They were all still alive, and that was the most important thing.

Avelor, Faelon, and ten other elven guards accompanied the riders down to the beach. Once they entered the tunnel in the west wall of the palace, they would work their way through, and head for the cells to free Ryneq and the others. After Fimor and Nykin gave the signal the witch had been destroyed, the dragons would then attack the Lowland army. The elves inside would work at freeing the Torserian Guard Lerran said were held in the barracks.

“Are you ready, Nykin?”
Fimor extended his wing for Nykin to climb onto and up into the saddle.

Nykin huffed as he buckled the thigh straps in place.
“I’ve never been so scared. But, yes, I’m ready.”

“Then let’s go.”

Fimor took two steps forward and leapt into the sky, his huge wings carrying them up and leading the way back to Torsere.

T
HEY
HAD
no idea what demands Seran and Mariskah had made. According to Lerran, the message was already sealed when he attached it to his
egrath.
They had no choice except to sit and wait for something to happen, and Ryneq hated waiting.

He grabbed the bars and tried to rattle them out of sheer frustration. Two days had passed since the egrath arrived in Torsere, one day since it flew back to Alel, and the only people they’d seen in the cells were the guards.

“What’s going on up there?” Ryneq directed the question to the guards, but as usual they both ignored him. He kicked the empty pail sitting next to the bars and tried again. “At least get us some more water. It’s been dry since last night.”

The moment he mentioned it, Ryneq felt incredibly thirsty. He’d only meant to coax the guard into responding, but now he thought about it, none of them had had a drink today.

To Ryneq’s surprise, one of the guards stood and wandered over to the cell. He glanced down at the empty pail and sighed. “Mirek,” he shouted over to the other guard. “Get over here while I open the door.” He waited until Mirek drew his sword and positioned himself in front of the cell. “Get right back, you two.”

Ryneq and Lerran moved until their backs touched the wall of the cell, and the first guard hastily unlocked the door and slid the pail out before locking it again. He thrust it at Mirek, who cursed at him but took it anyway and disappeared up the stairs.

The guard returned a while later, frowning as he shoved the pail into Ryneq’s cell.

“What’s wrong with your face?” the first guard asked, kicking out the chair for the other to sit in. “It’s not like you had anything better to do.” They both seemed to have forgotten about Ryneq and the others sitting close by, because they carried on chatting as though they were alone.

“Bloody villagers everywhere. Should’ve left them in the caves to rot.”

Ryneq curled his hands into fists at the callous way they spoke about his people’s lives, but the fact that they seemed to be alive kept him from saying anything. He hoped the guards would elaborate so he didn’t want to interrupt.

“I thought they were confined to their houses. That’s what I heard anyway.”

Mirek grunted as he sat down. “Yeah, but they’re allowed out to get water and food. Too many guards wasted on watching them if you ask me.” They started grumbling about food and being stuck in the cells after that, and Ryneq let their chatter fade into the background.

His people may have been discovered, but by the sounds of it, they were being treated as well as he could have hoped for. The relief he felt at finally getting some news took him by surprise, and he slumped back against the wall.

“Sire?” Nysad shifted closer to the bars, he moved slowly so as not to draw attention to them.

Ryneq shook his head slightly, and sank down onto the ground. “I’m fine. Just relieved.”

Nysad hummed in agreement.

They didn’t find out anything else that day, though, and by the end of it, Ryneq was as frustrated as ever. They had no real concept of time. The only reason they knew it to be evening was because the guard changed. Peros had regained consciousness and was improving, albeit slowly, but considering the conditions and the fact he hadn’t had any further treatment, it was a miracle he wasn’t already dead.

L
ERRAN
WOKE
him early the next morning. The guards hadn’t changed yet, so it must still be way before sunrise.

“What is it?” Ryneq rubbed the sleep from his eyes and squinted to make out Lerran’s face in the dim light. Thankfully the guards lowered the lamps at night, especially those near the cells, and it took Ryneq a few blinks to get used to it.

Lerran had an air of excitement about him that Ryneq hadn’t seen in days. He looked alert, his whole body poised for action as he crouched in front of Ryneq almost bouncing on his heels. “They’re on their way.”

Ryneq sat up, instantly awake and gripped Lerran’s arm. “How long till they get here?” They already knew about the rescue plan. Nykin had been in contact with Lerran twice since that first time, and even though it made Ryneq ache with jealousy, he’d never been so thankful for elf magic.

“Nykin said an hour or so before sunset.” He glanced over to check the guards were still passed out at their posts. After the first couple of nights, they’d stopped pacing in front of the cells, and had taken to nodding off in the early hours. Lerran lowered his voice anyway, and Ryneq leaned forward a little to hear him. “Avelor and Faelon will lead the attack on the tunnel. They’ll come here to rescue us, and then try and free your men in the barracks.”

Ryneq frowned. “They’ll be heavily guarded. How many elves are coming?”

Lerran shrugged. “Ten, twelve maybe, I don’t know. Don’t underestimate them, Your Highness. They will have the element of surprise on their side.”

Ryneq hoped Lerran’s faith wasn’t misguided. They already knew Nykin and Selene would be the ones riding into the caves to the witch. Ryneq had half expected it. As soon as he heard Eldin named Nykin as the new leader before he died, he knew whatever plan they came up with, Nykin would be the one to risk his life. He should’ve also known Selene would be right alongside him.

Lerran’s expression clouded over, and Ryneq assumed his thoughts were running along similar lines. He reached out and clasped Lerran’s arm. He wanted to reassure him that Selene and Nykin would be safe, they were protected by the amulets, after all, but he refused to tempt fate.

Lerran seemed to get his meaning anyway.

The day dragged by at an excruciatingly slow pace. They ate the meager rations the guards brought them, but Ryneq struggled to force much of it down with his stomach in knots. He felt so tightly wound, poised for action but having no idea when exactly it would happen.

When they heard the familiar voices of Seran and the witch coming down the steps, it was almost a relief. Finally something was happening.

Just as before, Seran hung back, letting Mariskah do the talking. “Your dragons have been spotted, but only two, not all of them like I requested.” She hummed to herself, looking between the two cells. “I told them what would happen, so you only have your men to blame.”

Ryneq’s blood ran cold as she grinned and pointed at Nysad.

“Bring him.” She turned to go but paused and glanced back over her shoulder. “And the king and the elf too. I’m sure they won’t want to miss this.” Her harsh laughter echoed up the stairs.

Seran stood back while the guards opened the cell doors and bound their hands again.

“She’s mad,” Ryneq said, wincing as the rope cut into his wrists. “You do know that? She could turn on
you
next.” Seran ignored him, so Ryneq tried again. “What can you possibly be getting out of this that’s worth the risk?”

Seran met his gaze then, a slow smile spreading across his face. And Ryneq knew.

“You think she’s going to make you your own army of dragon riders?” he asked, a little incredulous.

“She’s already proved she can do it. You saw her.”

Ryneq felt bile rise in the back of his throat at the memory and struggled against the guards holding him. “The way she did it was wrong. She forced it with dark magic—the bond will never be a true link between rider and dragon.”

Seran’s face pinched in anger, and he stepped forward until they were almost nose to nose. “She is more powerful than you can imagine. It will work, and your dragons will be
mine
.” Seran hissed the words, and Ryneq leaned as far back as he could to get away.

Ryneq sensed neither Seran nor the witch knew much about the dragons themselves. It became clearer by the second that they thought of them as mindless creatures, blindly doing what their riders told them. While they would ultimately obey their riders’ orders, if commanded to do so, they definitely had a mind of their own. “Assuming you manage to break the bonds of the riders flying in, the others are never going to follow after them once they see what you’ve done.”

“Of course they will. We have you. And they will want revenge—they won’t go anywhere.” He motioned for the guards to take their prisoners up the stairs. “Besides, you saw what happened to the first dragon. The others will have no choice.”

Ryneq looked back over his shoulder, rage flooding through him once more. “Vashek died!”

Seran shrugged as though it meant nothing, just an unfortunate side effect, and Ryneq wanted to kill him.

“Mariskah promised to be more careful next time.”

The guards hauled Ryneq up the stairs before he could reply, and he seethed all the way to the landing caves. His anger dissipated somewhat when he thought about the amulets the elves had crafted. From what Lerran told him, both dragons and riders would be protected against the witch’s magic, and he wanted to be there to see the look on her face when she realized it.