Wingborn (31 page)

Though Mhysra had heard the story a hundred
times, her aunt
’
s
passionate recounting brought a lump to her throat. Such a special
gift, granted entirely by chance. She
’
d felt so lucky all her life, treasuring the chance
she
’
d been given. And
now it was to be taken away from her by the one person who should
have valued it most.

Mhylla
clearly agreed, because she continued: “But now you’
re
willing to wreck it all, to smash this precious gift, and all
because you
’
re
determined that one of your children will follow the path
you
’
ve set out for them.
Maybe I shouldn
’
t
haven
’
t interfered with
your plans for Milli and Kilai, not that I regret either, but that
doesn
’
t mean Mhysra
should pay the price.
”

“
She is
my daughter.” The countess’
voice was hard, as though she
was forcing the words out between her teeth.
“
She will do as she
’
s told.
”

“
A fine
time to assert your authority,” Mhylla snapped. “Only the stupidest
generals pick battles they know they cannot win. You’re demanding
that she goes against everything she is. You’
re asking her
to turn herself inside out for you. You, a woman she hardly knows,
for all you claim kinship now that it
’
s convenient for you. You cannot win this battle,
Lunrai. Even if you succeed in separating her from Cumulo
–
”

“
I have
separated her from Cumulo!” Lunrai interrupted loudly, the words
sending a stab of pain through Mhysra’
s heart.

Mhylla gave a sceptical snort.
“
We
’
ll see about that,
”
she said, unwittingly soothing balm over
Mhysra
’
s wounds.
“
But as I was saying,
even if you
’
ve succeeded
in separating them, you
’
ll break her. She
’
s Wingborn, Lunrai. Part of a pair. They
don
’
t survive on their
own.
”

“
Myths,
lies, propaganda and stories, that’
s all it is. This
Wingborn nonsense you
’
ve
stuffed her head with all these years, no wonder she believes it so
fervently.
But it
’
s all lies!
”

As the furious scream died away something
inside Mhysra withered and died alongside it. Any hope she might
once have had that her parents would relent, would come to
understand her dreams and let her go, finally died in the face of
such anger and resentment. They would never understand. They would
never let her go.

“What happened
to you, Lunrai?” Mhylla asked in a low, sad voice. “What happened
to the girl who believed in legends? Who wanted to explore the
world in search of them?”

“
She
grew up.” The countess was back in control again, her voice cold.
“And it’
s time Mhysra did the same. I thank you, sister, for
the work you have done in raising my children. I shall always be
grateful for your care, but they are adults now. Your
responsibilities towards them are over. They are Kilpapans, and it
is up to the earl and me to decide how their lives go from now
on.
”

“They are not
servants or soldiers, fit only to obey your commands, Lunrai. You
must –”

“
No,
enough!
” the countess snapped. “Enough, Mhylla. You have said more
than enough. You have done more than enough. You are not the mother
of my children. You have no say in their futures. Your time with
them is over.”

“This is not
over, Lunrai,” Mhylla contradicted, her voice shaking. “It will
never be over. Adults make their own decisions.”

“
Then
you have no right to make any for them any longer.” Lady Kilpapan
sounded faintly smug, and Mhysra’
s hands balled into fists.
“
By your own words,
sister, your task is over. It
’
s time to let them go.
”

“Only if you
will.”

The countess gave a light and patently false
laugh.
“
My dear sister,
I wish for nothing more. Just as soon as Mhysra is settled in her
new life I shall be more than happy to do as you ask.
”

Her mother twisted words so easily, Mhysra
might almost have believed her, if she didn
’
t know that she would never settle into
this life her parents were forcing upon her. Nor, she hoped, would
Cumulo.

“Find me,
Cue,” she whispered, pressing a fist against her mouth. “Maegla,
please, help him find me.”

“
You’
re wrong about this, Lunrai, and I only hope you
never have cause to regret it.
”
Mhylla, it seemed, had given up. Though Mhysra
couldn
’
t blame her aunt
for no longer wishing to bang her head against the brick wall of
the Kilpapan pride, it still hurt to hear herself being
abandoned.

The countess laughed bitterly.
“
Say it like you mean it, sister. I
know there
’
s nothing
you
’
d like more than for
me to rue my every decision since the day I left your precious
Wrentheria. As if there had ever been enough room there for
me.
”

“I only wish
for my niece to be happy.” Mhylla was completely sincere.

Lunrai laughed.
“
Preferably at my expense.
”

“
Life
isn’
t all about you, sister. In fact –
”

Whatever she was about to say was lost under
a harsh scream. It came from above, and was swiftly followed by
sounds of confusion on the flight deck. The thunder of running feet
boomed overhead, followed by the sounds of shouting voices and more
screams. Mhysra threw herself towards the line of portholes along
one side of the cabin.

“Cumulo,” she
whispered, just as an enormous shadow swept across her vision,
silhouetted against the late-afternoon sun. More shadows swooped
past, circling the ship.

Miryhls. There were miryhls out there.

“
What is
going on?” Lady Kilpapan demanded somewhere on the deck overhead,
but Mhysra didn’
t care, she just stared out of the porthole
at the swirling miryhls, tears in her eyes as the sunlight flashed
on the gold tips of Cumulo
’
s wings.

He had found her. He had come.

T
HINGS IN THE
eyries had been hectic all morning, with
the Riders still having to patrol while also preparing stock,
supplies, miryhls and gear for the move to Aquila in two days. Many
of the miryhls were fretting with excitement. Though most abhorred
the long skyship flight to Aquila, they were nevertheless looking
forward to the change of scenery.

Of them all, however, Cumulo seemed the most
agitated. In fact, if Lyrai hadn
’
t known better, he would have thought there was
something wrong with the Wingborn. The way he baited from foot to
foot on his perch and paced the walkway when it was clear, spoke of
something more than excitement and nerves over the upcoming
move.

He
’
d asked Hurricane if there was something wrong –
being unable to ask the Wingborn himself – but his miryhl had
shaken his head and flicked his wings.

“
If
there is he won’
t say.
”

Hoping that it was nothing more than
pre-Aquila nerves, Lyrai shrugged and readied Hurricane for their
upcoming patrol.

Then Milluqua arrived, an uproar exploded
and Cumulo started screaming for Mhysra.

“Cane, stop
him!” Lyrai ordered, worried that the young miryhl would try to
track down his missing Wingborn alone.

Hurricane didn
’
t argue and, with the help of several other big
miryhls, managed to corral Cumulo long enough to calm him. He
stopped screaming but continued to bait, chest heaving with
emotion.

“
Tack me
up,” he muttered to no one in particular. “You must tack me up. I
can fetch her. I can bring her back. Make me ready. There
won’
t be time. We have to hurry.
”

When no one moved, most too stunned at
hearing a miryhl talking so freely without his Rider present,
Cumulo raked a golden-eyed glare over the watchers and shouted,
“
Do it!
”

Hurricane caught Lyrai
’
s eye and nodded, sending him darting for
the tack room. Corin was already there, searching the pegs for
Cumulo
’
s bridle, his
saddle already slung over her arm.

“
Good
girl,” Lyrai praised, reaching past her for the bridle beside
Hurricane’
s.
“
Let
’
s
go.
”

Seeing them approach with his things, Cumulo
stood still but couldn
’
t
stop trembling, his feathers puffed up, shaking with restraint.
Lyrai knew the moment he finished with the bridle Cumulo would go,
so he ordered Honra to have his flurry mount up and prepared a
message for Stirla as soon as he returned from his patrol.

“
Derrain’
s gone to find where the
Illuminai
went,
”
Corin murmured to
Lyrai as she fumbled with the straps of Cumulo
’
s breastplate.

Taking over, Lyrai sent her a grateful
smile, reaching down to check the breastplate was threaded through
the girth before he checked and tightened those straps too.

“
They’
ll be headed for Wrentheria,
”
Cumulo muttered, flexing his wings.
“
Mhylla and the cousins
are going home. That
’
s
where she
’
ll have her.
That
’
s where
they
’
ll be going. Buckle
me tight, I can take it.
”

Lyrai dared to put a hand on
Cumulo
’
s shivering wing.
“
Probably,
”
he told the miryhl, answering his
earlier comments before complying with the last.
“
But Derrain will find out for certain. It
won
’
t hurt to wait a
little longer.
”

“Too long, too
long,” Cumulo fretted, baiting from foot to foot again. “She might
hurt her.”

Though he doubted it, since it
wasn
’
t in the
countess
’
best interest
to injure her own daughter, Lyrai didn
’
t argue. The Wingborn was not rational at the
moment, and Lyrai had no wish to antagonise him further.

“
Wait
for Derry, Cue, that’
s all I ask.
”

At first Lyrai didn
’
t think Cumulo had heard, then the
Wingborn stilled and lowered his head, heaving a heavy sigh.
“
I
’
ll wait for Derry.
”

“Thank you.”
Trusting the miryhl to keep his word, Lyrai rushed to prepare
Hurricane. Checking the straps one last time, he shrugged into the
flying coat a student was holding out for him. It took no time at
all to buckle the straps into place, then he pulled on his flying
hat and checked his goggles were clear. This was going to be a
hard, long flight into uncertain weather conditions and he wanted
to be ready for anything.

“
Honra,
stay here and take half the flurry out on patrol,” Lyrai said to
his sergeant as he pulled on his gloves. “Make sure none of the
students try to follow. Corin and Derry are usually a sensible
pair, but I can’
t trust them with this.
”

“And Dhori?”
his sergeant asked.

Lyrai looked over his shoulder at where
Mhysra
’
s students
friends – minus Derry – were huddled by the door. He
wasn
’
t close enough to
hear what they were saying, but Dhori was holding Mouse in place
with his hands on his shoulders and talking earnestly.

Flexing his fingers to loosen the leather of
his gloves, Lyrai sighed.
“
If it
’
ll
appease the others, let him come. I doubt you could stop him
anyway. Tie Mouse up if you have to.
”

The corner of Honra
’
s mouth curled up in a wry smile.
“
I
’
ll lock him in the feed room.
”

“Good man.” He
slapped his sergeant on the shoulder, just as Derrain ran into the
eyries, sweat-soaked and panting.

“
Wrentheria,” he gasped, falling to his knees.
“They’
re going to Wrentheria.
”

Cumulo shrieked and pinned Lyrai beneath his
golden glare.
“
Now,
lieutenant?
”

“
Aye,
now,” Lyrai agreed, springing into Hurricane’
s saddle.
“
Riders, to
wing!
”

THE FLIGHT WAS
as
long and hard as Lyrai had expected, and there were many times when
he feared he might lose sight of Cumulo altogether. He truly was a
most impressive miryhl, and the added incentive of regaining his
kidnapped Wingborn made him almost too fast to follow. Thankfully,
with half his flurry at his back and the mysterious Dhori alongside
him, Lyrai
’
s worries
never quite came true. Yes, Cumulo was fast and determined, but
even he had to slow down occasionally for a gliding rest as they
flew through the morning and deep into the afternoon.