Chapter 14
14
KAEL
It was as good a place as any to rest Stormbreaker and break our fast. Mia would need a respite after riding all morning, and though Elydorians could go for longer periods without eating or drinking, we did have similar bodily functions to humans.
I had survived for many years with less tormented thoughts than on this morning’s ride. Aside from ensuring we weren’t being followed, and avoiding the areas of conflict which were in abundance along both the Gyorian and human border, other questions remained.
How did she come through the Gate? Would others be following? Was it, after all this time, reopened? Or was Mia an anomaly? What was she holding back from me?
Almost as importantly, how was it possible that a human could affect me the way she did? It was as if the pull she’d mentioned that had taken her through the Gate was drawing me to her as well. Try as I might not to smile at her outrageous comments, I found myself doing so more and more often.
And then there was that vow.
I hadn’t hesitated. Not that I would wish any innocent to come to harm, but in promising not to allow my father to hurt her, I’d positioned myself between the two. His methods for gaining information—as he had from King Galfrid’s mage who finally revealed the secret to opening and closing the Gate—could be extreme.
“This is the most beautiful lake I’ve ever seen.”
Her words brought me to the present.
It was small, but with a dense area of trees we could use for camouflage, which made the spot ideal. But I supposed, with its bright green color, courtesy of Elydorian lumina moss, it was a beautiful location as well. Even if we were on human land.
Dismounting, I reached up to aid Mia, lifting her down to the ground.
“How the hell did women deal with these things?” she asked, shoving her gown to one side. “First order of business is changing. I hope Isolde’s other outfit fits since someone got rid of mine.”
She untied one of the saddlebags where I’d stored the additional clothing, and I watched as Mia stormed off toward a thicket between two trees. For a woman who’d been plucked from her realm—one with so little magic that most did not even believe in those who possessed it—and subsequently taken against her will, she was managing remarkably well. Still, I had no doubt she would attempt to escape, but Mia would not get far. Gyorians were expert trackers, especially on land. I should probably explain that fact to her.
By the time she emerged from the trees, I’d set up a makeshift camp. There was no fire this time, as we would not be staying, nor a shelter, but I’d hidden Stormbreaker and provided us with stone seats.
“This outfit barely fits,” she muttered, folding the gown as best she could and shoving it into my bag.
I disagreed.
Issa’s breeches fit perfectly, if slightly snug around the hips highlighting every bit of Mia’s curves. The short tunic fell just beneath her waist and unfortunately covered most of her breasts, though it was more fitted than the clothing she’d arrived in. Since the humans’ fashion drew both from their own, as well as the Elydorian clans, their clothing sometimes served to denote nobility. Other clothing, like what she wore now, were more functional. In short, she looked like a cross between a human and Elydorian warrior. Leather boots laced up and over the tight breeches, her hair still pulled back in a braid. It was damned inconvenient to find myself attracted to my charge. One I was supposed to hate.
“What?” she asked, hands on her hips.
It was easier when Mia was afraid of me. She’d taken my vow to heart, it seemed, and now held nothing back. I could not imagine this woman in my bed. What it would be like to attempt to tame her there.
Not that I’d want her to be tamed. Not truly.
On the other hand…
“You should know, Gyorians are expert trackers, given their tie to the land.”
She froze.
“What does that mean, exactly?”
“It means I can hear you walking, if I so choose. It means, there is no escaping from me.”
She had the good sense to appear shocked. “Escape? Me?”
“Nor should you wish to,” I clarified. “If you wish to survive in Elydor.”
That did not please her, but I had not been aiming to do so. I’d made the vow, unthinkingly, and therefore had to make our roles clear.
Mia crossed her arms angrily.
“I wonder which is the real Mia? The one I’ve traveled with thus far or the one that attempted to get Issa to rescue her. The one who stomps around our camp like a wild trexan.”
“A what, now?”
“Trexans are found mostly in Gyoria but venture across the borders, especially when humans hunt them. You might think it was a boar in your world. Known for their strength and stubbornness, we consider the trexan a symbol of tenacity and resilience.”
She seemed surprised. “That sounds suspiciously like a compliment.”
“It’s not. Their tusks are sharp and their bullish temperament is not unlike yours, hence the comparison.”
“Thanks.”
I held back a smile. “You are a strange one, princess.”
The nickname, ironically, fit her. I knew the world Mia had come from, one which did not include riding all day or nibbling on roasted rabbit and stale bread, yet she never once complained. Not about that, at least.
“Here.” I held out a piece of bread. “It is all we have today. We’ll ride until I reach the Gyorian border, likely well past nightfall.”
“Sounds like fun.” She took the bread, her fingers brushing mine as she did.
Sitting, Mia ate in silence. I handed her a water skin which she took, but did not drink from. “It’s dangerous as a human, to not drink for too long a period.”
“It’s also dangerous to be kidnapped by your… by you.”
What had she been about to say?
Despite her protests, Mia drank anyway. I took the skin back and sat, peering out into the lake and seeing it from her eyes. It had been so long since I’d been to the human world, but I remembered the dull color of the first river I’d seen after passing through.
“What did you do? In your realm?”
“Like, my job?”
“Yes. Like your job,” I repeated.
“I am a museum curator specializing in ancient artifacts. I guess you don’t have them here?”
“Ancient artifacts?” I asked.
Mia rolled her eyes. She did that a lot, at least with me.
“Museums.”
“Not really. We have places where ancient artifacts, as you call them, are kept. Aetherians are especially obsessed with cataloging Elydorian history.”
“You don’t think it’s important? To remember your history?”
“To the extent they do? No. I leave that to the mages.”
“Then they have all the power. Speaking of power, I’ve been wondering. Who are the most powerful here? And don’t just say Gyorians because you’re biased.”
Finished with her bread, Mia wiped her hands clean of any crumbs and leaned back, lifting her face to the sun and closing her eyes as if she didn’t care whether or not I answered her question. I watched her, taking in everything at once. The curve of her hips. The swell of her breasts. Mia’s smooth cheeks and full lips. Her hair that I was certain appeared a different shade now than when she’d come through the Gate.
“Well?” she asked, Mia’s eyes whipping open, the moment of serenity over.
“You told me not to say Gyorians.”
“Seriously? You are so predictable.”
I wasn’t. And would like to show her how very unpredictable I could be. “What did you want me to say? The humans?”
“No. I mean… whatever. The truth would be nice.”
“The truth is, it’s complicated. Ask four people, and you’d get four different answers. Our magic is very different from each other. And even the humans have… strengths.”
“Such as?”
“Their innate abilities, when arriving in Elydor, are enhanced. If someone can see the future on Earth, they can do so more easily here. Those skills can be useful, in certain situations, but not so much in combat. The future doesn’t matter much if a tree-sized boulder is being hurled at your head.”
“What about between the clans?”
“Also complicated. Age matters. Training too. But so does inherent magical ability. In theory, the king or queen of each clan is the strongest in their clan.”
“In theory?”
“There have been exceptions.”
“And their offspring? Are you the second most powerful Gyorian?”
“Yes,” I said. “Though my brother might disagree. But offspring do usually inherit their parents’ abilities. As I said, though, training matters. But again, there are exceptions. Thalassaria once had a queen, and a notoriously lazy son who cared more about fucking than training, yet he became one of the most powerful their clan had ever seen.”
“It’s weird to hear you say ‘fucking.’”
“It is originally a human word,” I admitted. “Though I can do more than simply say the word.”
Her unabashed expression was precisely what I’d imagined it would be. Teasing her was enjoyable.
“What happened to him?”
“He drowned. Ship capsized.”
“How does the most powerful Thalassari drown? Don’t they use water magic?”
At this point, Mia was sitting up, leaning forward, eagerly listening to every word. I normally became impatient having to break down every detail of our world to an Uninitiated, but with her? I quite liked Mia’s enthusiasm to learn our ways.
“They do. And can even breathe underwater, for a spell. It’s a long story but, as I said, Elydorians can be killed. Especially if you lack any semblance of humility.”
Mia turned her head toward the lake, thoughtful. As she did, the sun’s light hit the back of her head. Jumping up from my spot on the rock, I made my way toward her.
“What are you doing?” she asked as I stood behind her.
Before responding, knowing she wouldn’t allow it, I reached up for the tie that bound her braid together.
“Kael?” She swatted my hand away. “What the hell are you doing?”
I grabbed her wrist. “Stop,” I said, my tone sharper than intended. With my other hand, I continued. Pulling off the tie, I threaded my fingers through the braid, loosening it. The fact that Mia didn’t try to stop me with her other hand, or attempt to twist away, was almost as telling as the silken strands that unraveled.
Dropping her wrist, I used both hands now, trying not to think of how smooth the loosened hair felt beneath my fingertips. Completely unbound, I no longer had a reason to touch it but could not pull away.
“Kael…” Her voice cracked.
Closing my eyes, as if doing so might make me forget what I was seeing, I thought back to that morning when she’d waved her hand and the slightest bit of air had wafted toward me.
I thought I’d been imagining it. That I’d had too little sleep.
But I wasn’t imagining the fact that Mia’s hair, once blonde, was currently a muted shade of white, more obvious now than it had been that morning, and even more so unbraided.
She shifted toward me, and I let her hair drop from my hands. Opening my eyes, I stared into hers, cursing myself for a fool. If I’d stopped staring at her breasts, I might also have noticed the blue I once saw there, mixed with brown and green, was brighter than most humans with similarly colored eyes.
I hated the fear in them.
But she had cause to be afraid if my suspicions were accurate.
“I was once on a Council,” I said, my voice measured as I wrestled to remain calm. “Responsible for deciding if humans were allowed entry into Elydor. That same Council was tasked also with controlling Elydorian travel into the human world. Which is how I know there was only one from Elydor in your realm when my father closed the Gate. The queen’s unborn daughter.”
“So he did close it,” she muttered. “Kael. I did not know my identity until moments before I fell through, when Jon told my friend Clara and me the story. An immortal realm? How could I possibly believe anything he said was true? But then I touched the portal, and it seemed to… come alive. To call to me.”
Of course it did. Elydor rebelled against any loss of its magic which was why so few of us stayed long in the human realm. The longer we remained there, the more our magic began to dwindle. The opposite of what was happening to Mia.
Nay. Not Mia.
“Mevlida,” I said. “Your name is Mevlida. When the humans foresaw the queen was with child, and predicted that babe was a girl, she told them her name would be Mevlida.”
Tears pooled in her eyes. “Kael, please?—”
My hands balled into fists at my sides. Not human. Half human. The other half, Aetherian.
“Though your full name is Princess Mevlida of Aetheria, daughter of King Galfrid.”
“I… I guess. Yes.”
Princess.
It felt right because it was right.
She began to cry.