Chapter 34
“Again!” Mercer shouted from the edge of the track field, motioning for us to repeat the agility course.
“Lieutenant, how many of these are we going to do?” Raine begged.
I’d lost count after number thirty-two.
“I said again, recruit,” he growled, turning his attention to the opposite side of the field. I had never seen Mercer this angry before.
We braced ourselves before launching into another madness-inducing sprint through the course. My heart was pounding in my chest, and my lungs begged for air. Just close the gap… A few more steps…
I crossed the finish line and hit the ground. Hard. The rest of the recruits followed suit, gripping their joints and trying not to vomit.
“I’ll be right back. You can take a break for now,” Mercer said flatly as he walked off the field toward the Compound.
“I’m not going to say–”
“Fia, don’t start,” Raine wheezed, flopping onto her back .
“I mean, I did say it.” I shrugged as Raine and Briar shot me with looks of contempt.
“I get to suffer the punishment you all brought onto us, and I didn’t even go!” Draven shouted breathlessly.
Rumbles of a subtle apology ran through the group.
“You should have come, Draven. Fia finally showed us all what she’s made of,” Nazul said. I looked over at him, expecting to see a smug expression carved into his face, but he merely smiled, shrugging his shoulders.
“Don’t worry. I heard all about it already.” Draven sighed and laid his arms over his head.
It seemed the revelation about my focus had run rampant through the Compound.
I winced. That was the last thing I wanted.
I wasn’t sure if it had made it to any of the higher-ups yet. I’d thought a lot over the weekend, coming to the conclusion that our superiors might find my focus more of a threat than an advantage.
To be fair, it’s not like I knew that would happen. I thought I’d just scare Baelor a bit. I groaned. The entire thing had been a mistake. I should have walked away.
“Riftborne!” Mercer shouted from behind us. I guess he was finally using my last name to address me. How nice.
I steadied my shaking legs as I stood, brushing the grass and dirt from my training leathers.
“Here. Now.” Mercer motioned for me to approach.
I walked across the field in his direction, and he turned, leading me in toward the Compound.
I couldn’t help the ball of nerves that now weighed heavy in my gut.
As we neared the base of the hill, I glanced up, and the air froze in my lungs.
Laryk stood at the Western Gate.
He was back.
My heart did somersaults in my chest as I urged my legs forward. Of course, his first duty upon returning would be dealing his own personal punishment on me. My stomach twisted, and I pushed down an unwelcome sliver of excitement.
There was none of his usual pompous amusement on his face, just stone-like indifference as I closed the gap between us.
“You’ll meet me at the gym in an hour. Until then, go make yourself seen near the Compound,” he said flatly and turned to walk away.
“What do you mean, make myself seen?” I asked, but he only continued walking.
I stole a glance at Mercer who was glaring at me. “Fia, go make sure that people see you at the Compound. Practice is too secluded today. Just stand outside and make sure you’re noticed. Ashford will explain the rest at the gym. Now go.”
I shot him a confused glance, but followed the instructions, making my way towards the front gate.
I mingled for a bit, keeping to myself and trying to avoid the anxiety that hung in my limbs. What was going on? Why was everyone being so secretive? I couldn’t help but think that Laryk had returned due to what happened at the clearing. What I had done to Baelor.
Was he furious? Did he want to kill me? Esprithe, I felt like an idiot for attacking Baelor now. His father was a powerful retired General. Had he ordered my death?
I wandered through the guards socializing near the front gate, making sure a few eyes were on me.
I couldn’t help but notice the lack of white uniforms. When I’d first become a recruit, it was so crowded on the street that one could barely walk.
Now, only a handful of guards lingered at the entrance.
“Have you seen my son?” A woman asked, and I spun left to look at her. “He’s been deployed for weeks, and I haven’t heard a word. He usually writes to me every day,” she said, tears staining her cheeks.
She wasn’t talking to me, but to a guard a few paces away.
“Who is your son?” A short, brunette from the Faction Scales asked, turning his attention to the woman.
She held out a crumpled piece of parchment with a painted portrait. “This is what he looks like. He was a member of Scales.” I could see the hope in her eyes, even at my distance.
“I'm sorry, Ma’am, I wouldn’t know,” the guard responded, and the woman nodded, moving onto another group on the other side of the gate.
Guilt churned inside me as I watched her beg for answers, knowing that he had probably lost his life in the West. Even if someone wanted to tell her, they couldn’t.
The sun beamed down on me, slowly beginning to set behind the towers of the Compound.
I didn’t leave until I knew several people had seen me.
Fear returned to my bones as I made my way towards the Central district, taking nervous steps.
The gym was only a block away. I couldn’t be sure whether an hour had passed or not, but I couldn’t wait any longer. I needed to know what was going on.
As I approached the familiar reflective glass, the front door crept open, and I heard Laryk’s voice.
“Inside. Now,” he said sharply.
I sighed and stepped through, making my way over to the bench.
“What did you do, Fia?” he said, a cutting edge to his voice.
“I–erm–don’t know what you’re–”
“Bullshit.” He shook his head and paced to the other side of the room.
“You took control of Baelor Soleil’s mind,” he said quietly. I couldn’t help but notice the tiny sliver of pride in his voice.
“I didn’t mean to,” I mumbled.
“And you did it in front of a hundred members of the Guard,” he stated, facing me again. His eyes looked tired, worn. They didn’t glow with their usual emerald sheen.
“So, what does that mean?” I asked, swallowing my nerves .
“Clearly, there are going to be those who view you as a threat. Both within the Nobility and the Guard. That will want you dead.” His voice was harsh and low.
“I don’t even really know how I did it, I mean–”
“It doesn’t matter. We can’t let anyone believe the validity of the rumors.” He turned towards the wall, placing his forehead in his hand.
What?
“But as you already mentioned, one hundred people saw it with their own eyes,” I said slowly, bile rising in my throat.
“Baelor is denying it. He said it never happened. You’re incredibly lucky that he was your target that evening.
People actually believe the words of a General’s son even if they don’t want to,” he murmured, facing me.
“Rumors have a way of morphing as they move through the masses. We will take advantage of that.” He paced back toward me, crossing his arms. “Do you understand what I’m saying? ”
“That I should lie?”
“Exactly. You had been drinking. You felt emboldened. You wanted to scare the shit out of the boy and told him to apologize, perhaps with a bit too much intimidation. He bolted. That’s all you know. Leave it at that.”
I paused. I still wasn’t processing everything he was saying. Why was he doing this?
“He attacked Osta. Will there be no repercussions for that?” I asked quietly.
“We have to choose our battles wisely now, Fia. He’s already been demoted. We just need to ride this out. I can’t push too far, not with who his family is.”
I turned my head and simply nodded.
“I’ve already spoken to the other Generals. Assured them what actually happened. What I told you. As long as they believe it, and your story matches Baelor’s, we shouldn’t have anything to worry about,” he said, taking a seat next to me .
“But why?” I asked, squinting. Why was he doing this?
“Because if the King finds out about this, I don’t think it will be pleasant for you. Sydian is a great man, but I don’t think he would turn a blind eye to the only person who could hold power over him.”
“But why are you protecting me? I’m sure you’re breaking an oath in order to do this. Why would you risk it?” I urged.
He glanced over at me, quickly locking eyes before diverting his attention to the other side of the room.
“You’re too important. It’s worth the risk.” He sighed, running his hand through his long copper locks. “I don’t particularly enjoy the situation you’ve put us in.”
“But how ?” I asked, “How can you break a blood oath?”
“Don’t worry about that. There are so many things I can’t yet tell you, Fia. I just need you to trust me as you’ve done before. I’m not going to let anything happen to you. If you don’t believe anything else I’ve ever told you, at least believe that.”
His words stirred something within me. The truth was… I did trust him. And I’m not exactly certain when that had become clear.
“Did you know?” I asked, in an attempt to quell the ache.
“Know what? That you harbored that ability? No. But I’ve thought your focus was unique from the beginning. It’s like nothing I’ve ever seen. It seems to be connected to the mind in even stronger ways than I initially thought.”
“It is,” I blurted before I could stop myself.
He glanced over at me with curiosity. “Go on.”
“When I summoned it this time, instead of blasting into Baelor’s mind like all the times before–I was able to enter his head softly, almost tenderly, like it wasn’t dangerous–wasn’t a threat.
And I could sense my focus searching for something, an access point of some kind.
And when it found what it was looking for in his mind, I just knew.
I knew I could command him. I can’t really explain it better than that.
I know it’s not much to go on…” I tr ailed off, realizing I had never before said this many words to him in a single setting.