Chapter 31
Emmeric
Altair marched Iyana into the forest, the star practically dragging her behind him, but not far enough to mask the sounds of what was occurring. Emmeric had been concerned and debated following to make sure she was okay, but it was readily apparent now that she was more than fine. Unfortunately, he was the only one at camp unamused by this. Talon and Kaz were giggling, nudging each other with elbows, and making generally lewd comments. Iyana cried out Altair’s name, and he wished he could transport himself literally anywhere else. Even Uther’s dungeons would have been a welcome reprieve.
“Talon,” Kaz said, “you wanna…” She waggled her brows at him.
Tal smiled. “Thanks, but no thanks. Not exactly my type, if you catch my drift.”
“You know this because…”
“Been there, done that. Definitely knew it wasn’t for me.”
“Maybe you just haven’t had the right pussy yet, red.” Kaz made a fake growling noise while pawing the air. The duo burst into laughter, almost falling backwards. Emmeric rolled his eyes. “Aw, c’mon, grumps, I didn’t forget about you. You wanna go be louder than them?”
“No thanks,” Emmeric grumbled. Kaz pouted, and again he wondered why he hadn’t taken her up on her offer. A few weeks ago, Kaz wouldn’t even have had to ask; he would’ve been all over her. Even if only for a one-time romp in the woods.
“Don’t mind him,” Tal said. “He’s just butt-hurt Iyana is out there with Altair and not him.”
“That’s not true,” Emmeric snapped, immediately outing himself by protesting. “I don’t want to listen to it, is all.” He crossed his arms with a huff.
“Sure,” Talon and Kaz said simultaneously, drawing out the word.
“Fuck both of you,” he said, causing more uproarious laughter. “Whatever, I’m going to bed.” Emmeric burrowed into his bedroll, tugging the edge up to his ear. By the grace of the gods, the noises emanating from the forest had ceased. He wouldn’t have been able to fall asleep listening to another man getting Iyana off. Not when he should be the one coaxing those sounds from her perfect little mouth.
Rustling leaves and snapping twigs alerted him to the couple’s return to camp. Emmeric attempted to wiggle deeper into his blanket so he couldn’t watch them. Wouldn’t have to see Iyana disheveled or Altair’s smug fucking face. But he still caught sight of her flushing as they broke free of the tree line to Tal and Kaz wolf whistling and making hoo hoo hoo noises while pumping their fists in the air. Altair guided Iyana over to his bedroll, and they climbed in together, him cuddling her from behind flush against her back. Jealousy roared through Emmeric’s soul. He had to remind himself she wasn’t his, she never was, and she never would be. The sooner he got over it, the better off he’d be.
It still took longer than normal to fall asleep, listening to Kaz purr as a leopard, Talon’s light snoring, and the disgustingly sweet little whispers coming from Altair and Iyana until they, too, slept. Once everyone else was out, Emmeric felt himself drifting.
He opened his eyes to a sun-brightened day, clouds drifting overhead. “That one looks like a dragon!” said a voice next to him. Rolling his head to the side, he saw Iyana lying in the grass next to him, staring up at the clouds.
“Dragons aren’t real,” he said with a smile on his face. He was happy. Content. When she turned to him, her face had a slight flush on her cheeks. Iyana’s gaze dipped to his lips and lingered for a moment too long. His grin widened.
“So? It looks like a dragon. What do you see?”
“A mouse.” He flicked her nose, a giggle erupting from her. He loved that sound. Emmeric loved the way she gazed at him in this moment—no fear, no distrust. Just pure happiness. Leaning over her, he pressed his lips to hers in a gentle kiss. She grabbed the back of his head to deepen the kiss, nipping on his bottom lip. He matched Iyana’s aggression with his own, loving every second, until she pushed his shoulder, rolling him onto his back so she ended up straddling his waist. His hands landed on her hips, fingers skating over her delicate curves. Iyana’s lips curled into a smile, but as a cloud passed over the sun casting shadows on them, the grin widened. Fire flickered between her hands and she raised them, then brought them down upon his chest. Hard. He was burning; she’d set his heart on fire. He would happily burn for her until the flames consumed him…
Emmeric gasped, sitting upright, patting at his chest to put out the flames. Flames which had only existed in his dream. The rest of the camp was awake already, looking at him as though he’d gone mad. Huffing in irritation, he rolled out of his bed and walked into the trees to relieve himself. He swiped a hand down his face. It’d been another dream about Iyana. The ones from before were always the same with Iyana meeting him in a black void—they’d kiss senseless, and she’d push him into nothingness. It was hot, sensual. Pure lust.
This was… love.
Before, the thought of lying with a woman on a grassy hill, searching for shapes within clouds, had never crossed his mind. But in his dream, with Iyana, it felt natural. Emmeric shook his head. There was no chance he loved Iyana. He’d only known her for a short period, and he was fairly certain she still mostly disliked him.
You need to get this woman out of your head, and fast,he thought.
Iyana
The morning after her tryst with Altair in the woods was…embarrassing. Talon was making moon eyes at them with his big, baby blues and would throw in occasional kissing noises. Kaz invited herself to a threesome, which Altair immediately shut down, but other than that, her star seemed completely unfazed by all the attention thrown their way. Iyana had had her fair share of lovers, but they never did next morning activities. No breakfast, no cuddling, no hanging out with each other’s friends. This was new territory for her. It may not have been for Altair, though. For all she knew, he had a wife who was still stuck in the sky. Oh gods. What if he had a wife?
Altair leaned over, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. He whispered so only she heard. “I don’t have a wife.”
Iyana shoved him away from her. “Get out of my head!”
He chuckled. “You projected the thought so hard I couldn’t help but overhear.”
She calmed, but only slightly. “You don’t?”
He shook his head, blonde hair still tousled from sleep, lending him a more human appearance. Softer. “Or a girlfriend, or a lover. I wasn’t seeing anyone when we went to the sky.” Iyana sighed a breath of relief.
Once they were all finished with breakfast and packing up camp, Talon called a group meeting. “We can’t continue to meander away from Athusia with no destination in mind. Team Save Arinem needs a plan, a direction.”
“Team Save Arinem?” Iyana raised an eyebrow.
“Listen, Smalls, I’m all ears if you have a better group name suggestion.”
“I’ll think about it.” She grinned at her friend.
“I was thinking,” Altair said, “I don’t know a lot about the Aztia and Kanaliza magic. Do you?” He directed the question to Kaz, who shook her head.
“It’s history I was familiar with,” she said, “but my understanding was there hadn’t been an Aztia duo in the past three centuries or so. The magic is completely different from mine.”
“That settles it then,” said Altair.
“Settles what?” Emmeric asked, finally contributing to the conversation for the first time that morning. He’d been avoiding Iyana, refusing to even look her in the eye.
“We need to go to the library.”
“The library?” Iyana asked, frowning. “Like, any library?”
“The ancient library, at the base of the Aisa Mountains.”
“Nobody goes there,” Emmeric said, shaking his head. “It’s said to be cursed.”
Altair attached his gear to his horse, swinging into the saddle and holding a hand down for Iyana. “Sounds like a perfect place then to find information about forgotten magic.”
Kaz clapped her hands, excited. “I’m in!”
Iyana took Altair’s extended hand, gazing into his molten gold eyes. “Then let’s go.”
Altair informed them it would take at least a week to reach the library, perhaps longer depending on the weather. They’d need to stop in a town outside of the Aisa mountain range to restock their provisions. The land around the mountains was cold and inhospitable, which was why—other than the curse on the library—nobody ever ventured in that direction. Past the mountains, legend said there was another continent, but anyone who tried to cross either returned quickly, without cresting the first peak, or didn’t return at all. There were probably dozens of bodies scattered across the frozen mountains. Rescue missions weren’t launched for those lost there, as it was too risky for all involved. The missing were written off. Funerals were held with empty pyres or coffins. Iyana shivered just thinking about it. Luckily, their journey would not take them into the mountains, but only to the base. Even there, the ground was frozen, life was rare, and a wickedly cold wind whipped constantly. For a woman from the desert, it sounded like her version of a hellscape.
As the sun began its descent, painting the sky a beautiful soft pink and stealing the warmth away from the earth, the group searched for shelter for the night. Iyana had become more optimistic throughout the day. They had a direction and a plan, her magic had come more easily to her despite the column of fire incident, and Tal and Kaz had finally stopped teasing her about running off with Altair. Those two were a menace together, but they made Iyana laugh, so she figured she’d let them both stick around—although she was certain Kaz never listened when someone told her what to do. Probably much to her parents’ chagrin.
Even Altair was in an upbeat mood, holding her tight to him on the horse, rubbing little circles into the sliver of exposed skin above her waistline, trailing small kisses down her neck. It all felt so right to be there in his arms. The casual touches and easy affection came naturally.
The only thing that wasn’t right was Emmeric. He sulked all day, barely saying a word to anyone, even Talon. Iyana was unsure if it was because he’d given up his life for her and she hadn’t been grateful enough, or if he’d thought life on the run would be more exciting. Or maybe he was…jealous? Of her and Altair? But, no, he couldn’t be jealous. Sure, he’d glanced at her heatedly a few times, but that was lust. Lust could be dismissed, swept under the rug, especially for someone like Emmeric who hated her. At least, Iyana thought he continued to hate her—he never spoke to her unless it was necessary, and he was reluctant to touch her when they trained with her magic. Still, she needed to apologize for being a brat and thank him for helping to save her life.
Plus, the night before she’d had a strange but pleasant dream of the two of them lying on a grassy hill, making shapes out of clouds. It was the most peaceful dream she’d had in a while, a welcome reprieve from the nightmares, and she would love to get their friendship to that level of comradery. Despite their start, Iyana had to admit to herself she appreciated having him by her side.
She sidled up to him as he was unpacking Ciri. “Hey, Sully.”
Emmeric’s brow furrowed. “Sully?”
“Yeah, because, you know,” Iyana kicked a pebbled around with her bare feet, “your surname is Sullane and you’ve been especially sullen lately.” She tried her best at a humorous smile but was aware it probably looked forced and disingenuous.
“I don’t like it,” he said, continuing to brush down his horse.
“Well, you call me Mouse and I’ve told you multiple times I don’t like it. So, tough.” This wasn’t going very well.
“Mouse is cute,” Emmeric argued.
Iyana ran a hand down her face. “Look,” she said, softening her tone, “I wanted to tell you thank you. For saving me from those dungeons.” A shiver ran through her. “And I’m sorry I haven’t been more appreciative or trusting, especially after all you’ve done for me.”
Emmeric appeared shocked, pleased, and embarrassed all at once. A giggle formed in Iyana’s chest at the sight, but she forced it down, thinking it wouldn’t be appreciated in the moment.
“I killed Azazel,” he said, so quietly she barely heard him.
Shock and fear ran through her spine at the random mention of the name. “What?” The word escaped her as a whisper.
“I killed him. I saw what he’d done to you and I—” Emmeric swallowed hard. “I couldn’t abide by that.”
“I know. Thank you.” Although Iyana was very much opposed to senseless violence, in this case it seemed to be for the better good of humanity. She worried, though, what it would do to Emmeric’s soul. Would he carry this around with him forever?
He nodded minutely. “I’d do again too, if I had to.”
Maybe he doesn’t hate me…
Iyana opened her mouth to reply, but a branch snapped in the trees. Altair, Talon, and Kaz were all in sight, so someone—or something—was in the woods watching them. Emmeric nudged her behind him until she was between his broad back and the horse. His hand rested on the pommel of the sword at his hip, his second blade strapped to his back within easy reach. The other three quickly picked up on Emmeric’s wariness; Talon drew his sword, whereas Altair and Kaz’s defenses lay beneath their skin. Iyana suddenly felt inept and very much like a burden. All her companions were capable of defending themselves and she could barely muster up a spark of fire after intense concentration, and that was only in ideal, peaceful circumstances. Hopefully it was only a deer.
A group of seven men clad in all black skulked out of the shadows. Iyana deflated as her heart raced. Not deer then. Damn.
Emmeric’s sword rang out metallic as he removed it from its sheath, pointing it at the men. The man at the front of the group had shaggy brown hair, a wicked scar through his left brow running down his cheek, and soulless eyes which lit up with greed when they saw Iyana. A wolfish grin pulled his scar taut. She hid behind Emmeric a little more.
“I know who you are,” he said in a singsong, pointing at her with a dagger. Emmeric tried to hide her even further. The man studied the rest of the group. She saw when he recognized Emmeric and Talon, and then as he realized he had them outnumbered by two men. No doubt loving the fact that only two people in Iyana’s party were armed. But they didn’t realize they had a star and a leopard shifter, and Iyana wanted to keep it that way as long as possible.
“Looky what we found, boys,” said the man, who was obviously the leader of this little band. Iyana assumed they were either bandits or bounty hunters. “Two treasonous bastards, and one escaped prisoner. Seems like we’ll be the ones collecting the emperor’s very generous reward.”
“How much is the reward?” Kaz asked. Iyana cut her a scathing glance, but Kaz shrugged. “What? I wanna know.”
The man turned his dagger now to point at Kaz. “Don’t you be thinking you can take the money from us, little girl.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t dream of it,” Kaz said brightly. “Just curious by nature, I guess.”
He squinted at her but answered the question. “Two thousand gold pieces for the girl. Alive. Five hundred each for the traitors, dead or alive.” Iyana’s heart stuttered in her chest. That amount of money for her alone would feed all of Imothia for at least a year. And that was without the extra thousand for Talon and Emmeric. Should they be overpowered, Iyana would be bound and dragged back to Uther, while all her friends lay dead in the dirt. She knew better than to think these men would keep any of the others alive.
“Damn,” Talon cursed. “I thought I would be worth more. I’m a little offended.”
“As you should be,” Kaz added. “You should be worth at least a thousand gold pieces—more if you factor in your luxurious hair. Grumpy though… five hundred sounds about right.” Emmeric didn’t engage in the banter, instead keeping track of the movements of all seven bounty hunters as they slowly spread apart to surround them. He was in military mode now, and Iyana was happy to be close to him. She noticed Altair also marking each man, murder in his gaze. Just in case, Iyana reached out to her magic. Although she wasn’t sure it would protect her, it made her feel ever so slightly safer.
The leader’s eyes flashed at Kaz. “You’ve got a mouth on you. I may keep you as a pet, see what else that mouth can do.”
“You couldn’t afford me, sweetheart.” Kaz blew him a kiss.
He raised a brow, a small smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Did you not hear the reward?”
“Oh, I heard. I’m extremely expensive.”
“Hey, boss,” called a short, stumpy man who had moved into position closer to Kaz and Talon. “The mouthy one, I think she’s—” But he never got to finish his sentence, and would never utter another one, as Kaz shifted swiftly and tore out his throat with her gleaming canines.
All chaos broke loose.
The remaining six bandits rushed forward, unfazed by the gigantic black leopard now terrorizing them. Emmeric drew the second sword from his back and engaged two men at once. Swords swung gracefully through the air, Emmeric dancing around his opponents with a skill and speed Iyana hadn’t known he’d possessed. Metal clanged as weapons clashed together. Iyana feared briefly for his safety, but he appeared to be in his element, toying with the men when he could have easily ended them without breaking a sweat.
The others were holding their own. Kaz chased one man around the clearing, swiping at him with paws as large as his face—he was screaming. Talon was fending off a rather large man who wielded an ax, but also appeared to be enjoying the swordplay. Altair was playing with his food. He’d once told Iyana he was restricted from killing anyone while he was on the earth, and so he instead used his super-speed to run around the man, stopping to throw a punch, then darting off again before his victim pinpointed his location. Iyana almost felt sorry for the man, he looked so confused, but she had only counted five…
An arm latched around her neck, cutting off her air. She scrambled at the arm, scratching to be let go, but met leather vambraces instead of skin.
“Stop struggling.” Hot, fetid breath blew across her face. The chokehold loosened enough for Iyana to drag in a large gulp of air, but the cool press of a knife at her throat made her stand still. Her hands remained on the man’s forearms, but stilled; she didn’t want to risk him accidentally slitting her throat.
“Iyana!” Emmeric roared. She couldn’t see any of the others, but from off to the side Iyana heard the sound of bodies hitting the ground.
“Stop!” the man yelled. Iyana finally recognized his voice as the leader. “If any of you come any closer, I’ll cut her throat, reward or no reward. Now, if you want her to stay alive, I suggest you all allow me to walk out of here with the pretty lady.”
He rotated enough so that her friends were in her sightline. The bodies of the other six men were scattered across the clearing. Only the one Altair was facing was still breathing, but it wouldn’t be long before one of the other three ended him. Kaz was growling, blood coated on her maw. Altair, Talon, and Emmeric all stood close by, but Iyana knew none of them, not even the star with his speed, would be able to reach her before the man killed her.
“It’s okay,” she said. “I’ll go with you willingly.” The words caused the knife to scrape over her throat, hinting toward a quick death, without drawing blood. Emmeric’s gaze was pinned on the weapon, his expression promising murder.
“Astalle…” Altair pleaded with her, his expression open. “Please.” Altair didn’t ask much of her, and he rarely begged. Iyana desperately wanted to comfort him, and she felt her heart breaking alongside his.
It’s okay,she mouthed to him. He shook his head. Talon and Emmeric still had swords in their hands, blood dripping off the points. Iyana swore she heard the plop of the viscous fluid hitting the dirt, the sound threatening to bring her back to her dank cell in the dungeons. But this was not the time to panic. Iyana focused on the warmth of the fire within her to steady her frazzled nerves.
Emmeric was weighing the blade in his right hand, and she instinctively knew he was mentally calculating how fast he could throw it at her attacker versus how swiftly the knife would end her life.
“Emmeric,” she said, catching those beautiful blue eyes, “I’ll be okay.” As he looked at her, she reached towards their bond, her magic close to the surface. The connection came easily, a small gasp escaping her lips which she tried to pass off as a sob. Emmeric’s mouth parted slightly, but it was the only indication he felt anything amiss, other than his eyes sharpening with the knowledge of what she was going to do. Be careful, she could almost hear his words in her head.
Although she wasn’t exactly sure what she was doing, she called to the woman of fire for her assistance yet again as the man dragged her back towards the tree line. The same motherly comfort wrapped around her in a warm hug. Tapping into the feeling and Emmeric’s power thrumming in her chest, she pushed.
Silver light flared outwards from her, and because she couldn’t control the magic yet it exploded in every direction. While she willed her friends to be unharmed, she wasn’t sure if wishing would be enough to make the magic cooperate. The blast flung the man off of her, but a burning, stinging pain on her neck told her his knife had still made its mark. Blood trickled down into her shirt, but the man wasn’t dead and therefore still a threat. Iyana turned to do something with her magic, she wasn’t quite sure what, only to find Emmeric plunging a sword through the bounty hunter’s chest.
Extracting his sword from the body, Emmeric sheathed it, stalking towards Iyana with an intensity in his expression she hadn’t seen before. He looked like Otho reborn—pure victory and vengeance. He bit into the pad of his thumb, blood welling instantly. Her focus was riveted to Emmeric prowling towards her. How could it not be when this absolutely gorgeous man was staring at her like he wanted to claim her, right there in front of everyone. Emmeric brushed his bloody thumb across the cut on her neck, his other hand hot at her waist, magic rushing to where their blood co-mingled. Touching her neck once he pulled away, Iyana realized she’d healed. Emmeric’s thumb had as well.
“Thank you.” The words came out in a whisper.
“Any time,” Emmeric replied casually, but his tone belied the intensity of his gaze. Iyana felt the promise of those words in her soul. He would always fight for her. Always.
The moment snapped, Altair rushing to her, touching her face, her neck, checking for any lingering injuries.
“I’m fine,” she said, stilling his hands with hers. He rested his brow on her forehead, eyes closed.
“Don’t ever do that to me again,” he said, voice rasping with pain. When he opened his eyes, fear lurked in their depths, and unshed tears lined his lashes.
“I’ll try,” she whispered, running a thumb over his cheekbone. Promises couldn’t be made, not with what they had set out to do and the unknowns of it all.
The sound of retching returned her focus back to the surrounding scene. Emmeric had left her side; she hadn’t even heard him go. Seven bodies were strewn about the clearing, all five of Team Save Arinem were covered in blood, and Talon was vomiting in a nearby shrub.
“Are you okay?” Iyana asked, concerned. There may be something in her medical kit to help, but she wasn’t sure what had caused the vomiting to begin with.
“Don’t like…blood,” Tal gasped, retching again.
Kaz laughed at him, back in her human body, blood still around her mouth. “You’ve been a soldier for a decade, and you can’t stand the sight of blood?”
“He does this every time,” Emmeric said, cleaning his sword. “Any time we’re in a battle where blood is spilled, you can find Talon retching afterwards. Still great in a crisis, though.” Emmeric grinned, and Iyana was shocked. She’d never seen his true smile—he had fantastic teeth, which was a weird thought—she didn’t usually appreciate a man’s teeth—but his joy illuminated his face. He was beautiful.
“Thanks, old man,” Talon said, wiping his mouth with part of his shirt that remained clean.
“Why did you join in the first place?” Iyana asked.
“To keep this one out of trouble,” he replied, waving in Emmeric’s direction. “Didn’t seem to keep trouble from finding both of us, though.”
“Come on,” Altair said, with a warm hand on Iyana’s lower back. “We should find a new campsite.”