The Elder Blood Chronicles Book 2 Blood Honor and Dreams (2 page)

“It’s been two weeks since we agreed to keep
the secret. Are you truly out of patience already?” Jail asked,
shaking his head at Neph in what might have been disgust.

“You are losing her attention again. I can
see her gaze drifting back to pretty boy,” Neph motioned toward
Jala and she blushed.

“Sorry,” Jala mumbled and sat up, rubbing her
face. Marrow shifted behind her and stretched. “It’s just …, I’m
sorry, I don’t know what exactly it is. I’m just having trouble
concentrating,” she gave Jail a weak smile and shrugged.

“You are in love, that’s what it is.
Everything else is secondary as it should be,” Wisp chirped happily
and beamed a smile at Jala. The bright gleam in Wisp’s green eyes
drew an answering smile from Jala. Wisp was always in a good mood.
It was impossible not to feel better when the Fae was around.

“A goofy smile most of the time, difficulty
focusing, (which I might add you already had a terrible time with),
and daydreaming. Yes, you are most definitely afflicted,” Neph said
in a tone that suggested he thought it might be contagious. Jala
watched him, half expecting him to scoot farther away from her.

“Love is not an affliction,” Wisp snapped and
kicked Neph lightly.

With a loud clearing of his throat, Jail once
again captured her attention and she grinned at him. “Please ask
again. I promise I will pay attention. I am fully focused now,”
Jala said with a bit of chagrin.

“Who in Sanctuary holds the most power? I
mean the world, not the city,” Jail repeated and leaned back,
giving her time to think.

Crossing her legs under her, Jala folded her
hands in her lap and considered the question. It was a loaded
question, she knew. There were so many ways to answer it. Since
they had returned to the city two weeks ago, these sessions had
become a routine in the mornings. On every free day, Jail would sit
and help her catch up on her classes and ask her random questions
and she was beginning to figure out how to best answer him. It
wasn’t one simple answer Jail was looking for. He wanted her to
consider the question more than anything else.

“It’s the goblins. Little do we know they are
about to take over the world,” Neph said dryly.

“And you shall be the king of them,” Wisp
rose and bowed mockingly in Neph’s direction. “Hail, the Goblin
King,” she called loudly as she dropped back to her prone position
in the grass.

“You mock now. Just wait, little girl,” Neph
warned with a smirk.

Jala tried to fight back a smile and forced
herself to ignore their banter. With a deep sigh, she locked her
gaze with Jail’s. “I want to say the High Houses, but that’s too
obvious and it’s the cheap answer that anyone would give. You
aren’t looking for the common answer here. You are looking for my
answer.”

With a slight nod, Jail motioned for her to
continue. “And your answer is?”

“My answer is that it changes too quickly to
judge accurately. It isn’t simply the houses that hold power in
Sanctuary. The mercenaries hold power, the Fionaveir hold a sort of
power, and the merchants hold power. It shifts by the hour
depending on countless things. Something as simple as a rumor can
shift power in Sanctuary.” She paused, frowning, and gave another
shrug. “If I absolutely had to say one thing that holds power above
all others all the time, I’ll say the commons. They outnumber us
and they provide our food. While they are not strong magically,
without them we would suffer,” she said finally, not even pausing
for a breath as she spoke.

Jail seemed to consider her words and gave
her a weak shrug. “We can make food with magic, though it does have
side effects if eaten too long. And while they do outnumber us,
most High Lords could kill an entire country with little effort.
The only thing that stops them is the fear of other High Lords
taking advantage of their temporary weakness from using that sort
of power,” He countered.

“True, and that is what gives the commons
power. If we had to do everything they do with our magic we would
all be drained and at risk,” she replied with as much confidence as
she could muster. In truth she was beginning to doubt her own
theory.

“Well, considering how bloody many commons
there are, most of the food they supply, they eat. In Delvay, we
don’t have many commons. They are generally too weak to survive in
the mountains,” Neph added.

“I would say personally it’s the Aspects,”
Wisp said looking up from her map.

“The Aspects have power with the commons, but
when it comes to the High Houses they are just another challenge.
Most High Lords don’t spare them a second thought. They are here
for the commons,” Jail objected mildly.

“It’s me. I have the most power in all of
Sanctuary. Tremble before me,”

Jala looked up sharply to see Finn grinning
down at her. She hadn’t noticed the swords had stopped ringing or
even heard him approach. Smiling up at him she shook her head. “I
have to disagree,” she said with a raised eyebrow.

“Well then, you will be the first that I
smite,” Finn returned and dropped into the grass beside her.
Leaning over, he gave her a quick kiss and then sat back, wiping
sweat from his face. “You don’t want me too close right now, I
don’t think.
Ode to swordplay
isn’t a pleasant smell,”

“I don’t mind,” she replied, leaning over
against him. Grinning up at him, she rested her head against his
shoulder. He smelled strongly of sweat and the oil he used on his
swords, but it was comforting to her. Both were smells that she had
grown used to in her time with Finn.

“And that’s it, no more coherent thoughts
from her today,” Neph broke in and stood, quickly shaking his head
and frowning at Finn. “Congratulations, Finn, your presence kills
brain cells, but then I was saying that long before you met
Jala.”

“But they are so happy when they die,” Finn
replied with a grin.

“Happily dying brain cells,” Neph said dryly,
shaking his head again. “I’m leaving. I have better things to do
than witness the cooing and cuddling. Come see me this evening
without your cretin, Jala, and we will work on magic.” Turning,
Neph headed out of the garden, striding quickly for their hall.

“Completely asexual,” Valor said quietly
drawing the words out as he watched Neph leave. Turning back to
Jala, he smiled. “We are going by Arovan’s holdings today before we
head to the Merro district. I have a surprise for you,” He said
with a smile and then sniffed the air lightly. “But first, I’m
going to bathe and change. I think I might possibly smell worse
than Finn,” With a slight bow of his head, Valor turned to leave
and Finn rose to follow.

“Have to excuse me for a bit. Having Valor
say I stink is the last straw. I’m going to bathe too. I’ll be back
shortly. Jail, keep her company for me would ya,” Finn said,
brushing grass off of himself quickly. “Val, wait up,” He called
over his shoulder and jogged off after the knight.

Jala smiled, watching Finn playfully smack
Valor in the shoulder as he caught up and then looked back at Jail.
“I’m going to revise my answer,” she said with a faint smile.

Raising an eyebrow Jail nodded. “To what?” he
asked.

“To me, Finn really does hold the most power.
His opinion, his mood, his desires, they all mean more to me than
anyone else’s. Therefore, he has the most power over me. It falls
back on priority I suppose. To an Avanti, a banker likely has the
most power. to Valor, it’s his father. To a common, it’s their
ruling High Lord. Power is judged by the individual looking for it,
and every answer will be different,”

“Do you really think Finn holds power over
you?” Jail asked.

Smiling, she shook her head slightly. “Not in
the sense you are implying. I do not exist on his whim, but in a
sense, yes, he does. It is a mutual power, though. My feelings hold
as much sway over him, I think,” she answered and sighed. “I’m not
sure if I’m explaining myself well,” she admitted.

“No, you are. I understand you. What you are
saying is that there are different degrees of power and motivation
and the power you answer to is Love,” Wisp said, sitting back up
and turning to face them. Grass stuck to the front of her dark
green tunic but she didn’t seem to notice. “Valor answers to his
father for the same reason, love. Whereas the Avanti look to the
banker out of greed and most commons look up to their High Lords
out of fear or respect. You are saying emotions are connected with
who we see as powerful.”

Nodding slowly Jail smiled. “That is an
answer with thought behind it, much better than a simple High Lords
answer,” he said with approval. “Not necessarily the correct
answer, but the questions I ask generally don’t have a correct
answer. Here is your next question. You can have all afternoon to
think up an answer,” He paused until she met his gaze. “Why did the
Guardians make Sanctuary the way they did?” he asked.

“Bugger, glad you play the question game with
him rather than me. I’d strangle him,” Wisp said, shaking her head
slightly. “I think the first step we should do for Merro is find
healers to work there, by the way. If you like, I could do some
checking around while you are off with Val and Finn,”

“Thank you so much, Wisp. I’d truly
appreciate that. From what I hear, healers are desperately needed
there. I’m afraid I haven’t had the chance to look around in that
district at all. I’m not really sure what to expect,” Jala said and
sighed.

“Think of the worst possible slums and the
most poverty and sickness you can imagine. That should have you
braced well enough for when you see how bad it really is,” Jail
said quietly. “The last winter was really hard on that district, as
well as the Greenwild district. Plague hit with a vengeance and
starvation hit not long after. Shade did a bit to improve it, but
it wasn’t enough.”

“Maybe Sovann’s moving his warehouse there
will help a bit. At least people will have a chance to make some
money that way,” Wisp offered.

Jala nodded, not wanting to speak. These were
her people they were talking about. The ones Symphony and the rest
of the Fionaveir expected her to lead. How much hate must they have
built up for the High Lords by now after living in filth for so
long? From what she had learned at the Academy, her Bloodline had
been a cruel one. Frowning, she wondered what reaction her people
would have when they learned the Merrodin Bloodline wasn’t truly
dead.

* * *

“So, are you going to give me any hint as to
why we are going to see your family?” Jala asked.

Valor cast a glance back at her and smiled,
shaking his head. He was walking a few feet ahead of them and
seemed in a much bigger hurry than Finn who paced beside her, idly
twisting branches from the garden plants as they walked toward the
stables.

“I take it you don’t get along with his
family?” Jala asked looking over at Finn with a raised eyebrow.

He looked up sharply from a lily he was
dismembering and grinned. “No, I get along with Honor fine, almost
as well as I do Valor. That’s not at all what I was thinking
about.” Shrugging, he left off with the plants and tossed the
mutilated stalk aside. “I’ve heard some rumors the last week or so
and it’s got me wondering.”

“What kind of rumors?” she asked.

“High Lord Blackwolf is summoning people from
Sanctuary to help in defense of Glis. High Lord Delvayon is calling
his swords. It just doesn’t seem to be a very good time to be a
small fish. I’m trying to figure out how to build your power
quickly,” he replied letting out a sigh.

“Our power,” she corrected.

He shook his head and smiled at her. “Your
power. I want nothing to do with politics. I’ll help you with
whatever I can, but I don’t want the power at all,”

“They aren’t just rumors, Finn,” Valor cut
in, turning to walk backwards as he spoke. “That’s why we have to
get this done now. It won’t be long before Arovan is pulling people
back home as well. My brother hinted, the last time we spoke, that
father might recall me. Things are bad in Glis,”

“What’s going on there?” Jala asked, looking
between the two of them.

“From what I understand, no one really knows.
Some say Kali has created a new threat, others blame Rivasa or
Nerathane,” Valor said with a shrug and paused in step for them to
catch up. “I hear that most of Gaelyn’s commons are dead and people
are disappearing from Glis now,” he said in a near whisper as he
fell into step beside them.

“I heard the same. I don’t think its Rivasa
or Nerathane,” Finn replied.

“Who is Kali?” Jala broke in, confusion clear
in her voice.

“Kali the mad. Kali the cruel. Kali the
wicked,” Valor chimed, giving the words a musical quality. He
grinned wickedly as he spoke as if the words were forbidden
ones.

“She is a geneticist that is a bit off in the
head,” Finn replied and swept his gaze around the garden as if he
expected her to appear. To see the two of them acting nervous just
talking about someone was a bit shocking to Jala. She had yet to
see anything that scared Finn and Valor didn’t seem too different
in that respect.

“That’s putting it mildly. She is what the
stories would call a mad scientist. She abducts people for spare
body parts. She creates monsters to try to kill us off,” Valor
said, his tone low and ominous. He motioned toward Marrow and spoke
even quieter. “She created the Bendazzi, the only predators on
Sanctuary that the people of Glis cannot find affinity for. She
created the serpents and most of the countries lost their naval
forces not long after.”

“She is the boogie man for immortals,” Finn
cut in and rolled his eyes at Valor. “Really, for those kinds of
stories we should be sitting around a campfire. Kali is mostly
reputation. People tell their children scary stories about her and
the fear of her grows from that. I sincerely doubt if she is as bad
as the stories make her sound.”