Chapter 12
Chapter twelve
Alyx
Mountains appeared on the horizon, stretching farther and farther up toward the sky the closer we rode. I had seen the peaks bordering the desert before, but rarely had I come this close. Still, we rode nearer
The scent of woodsmoke and the yips of hunting dogs signaled that we approached an encampment. Almost a week of riding without Kelvar’s clan in sight, and now it appeared only a day’s ride from the oasis where we had rested.
My spine stiffened as I sat before Kelvar on his horse, approaching the large circle of tents in the distance, nestled right into the base of the mountains.
Despite his assurances that he would make his Lord see reason, the threat of violence remained palpable in the air.
Dread filled my belly, heavy and potent at the thought of bloodshed on my behalf.
But I trusted Kelvar.
As we passed through the first ring of tents, it was as if a shadow fell over us, and my sense of foreboding grew.
Clan encampments were usually full of life, from children playing to horses nickering.
While Clan Katal’s camp was not quiet, there was the undertone of tense anticipation in all the voices drifting on the air.
Kelvar sensed it too, if the way his arm tightened around my waist was any indication. Still, he sat proudly and did not slow his mount as we headed toward the tallest tent in the encampment: Lord Deryn’s. It stood just at the base of the mountain, shadowed by the peaks looming over head.
We reached the clear area surrounded by the largest tents, and I frowned as people abandoned their fires and ducked out of their own dwellings to watch.
While Clan Padra’s Warlord was often greeted with cheerful waves and shouts of greeting when he returned from a battle, Clan Katal watched Kelvar warily.
It was as if they feared his power. I wondered if that was why Lord Deryn sent him away so often.
We stopped in front of the largest tent. At the top, the banner bearing the black and white viper of Clan Katal flapped in the wind.
The dread that had bubbled sluggishly in my belly boiled up into my throat. I shrank back into Kelvar, almost wanting to suggest that we turn and leave.
But he was determined. He hopped down from Dileas’s back and approached Lord Deryn’s tent.
Before he could reach the entrance flap, Lord Deryn himself emerged.
He stood a few inches taller than Kelvar, but where Kelvar’s shoulders were wide and imposing, Lord Deryn’s bare arms were wiry and lithe.
His shaved head reflected the evening sun, revealing swirling lines inked over his bare scalp.
“You took long enough,” he greeted Kelvar without preamble.
I frowned. It did not seem wise to treat somebody so powerful with such disdain. But Kelvar did not seem perturbed, almost as if he were used to the treatment.
He wrapped his knuckles to his temple in a sign of respect to his Lord as he answered. “The desert was challenging,” he admitted, “But she has rewarded us with a great gift.”
Lord Deryn’s gaze drifted to me where I still sat atop his horse. Dileas pawed at the ground, and I tried to sit proudly.
“The spawn of Lord Avis will fetch us a mighty price indeed. He is notoriously weak when it comes to his daughter,” he sneered.
The way he looked at me set my teeth on edge, but Kelvar cut in before I could think to speak.
“We will not be ransoming her back to her father,” he declared.
Lord Deryn’s face purpled, but Kelvar pushed on as if he hadn’t noticed.
“I will be marrying Alyx, and her healing abilities will make her an invaluable asset to our people.”
I almost fell off his horse at the sudden declaration.
While he had made it clear that he would keep me at his side, this was the first time he had mentioned marriage.
But as he glanced back at me, I couldn’t help the beginning of a smile that quirked my lips at the thought—at the way he barreled into a future with me with no second thoughts or hesitation.
Lord Deryn spluttered and spat. “I have no use for a healer! We need a weaponsmith, one her father will surely allow us to take for his daughter’s safe return.”
Kelvar’s fingers drifted toward the hilt of his saber, but still, he tried to reason. “I have never asked much of you, my Lord. I have let you command my power as you willed—wield me as a weapon against your foes. I am asking you to grant me this one wish. Let me make Alyx my wife.”
I didn’t see the men creeping up on my side until it was too late.
Dileas reared in response to my sudden panic, lashing out with her lethal hooves.
As her actions caused me to slip back, one of the men grabbed me by the leg and yanked.
I slipped from Dileas’s back and hit the baked earth with a thud so hard it made my eyes water.
“Alyx!” Kelvar screamed.
Before I could clear my swimming vision, a heavy boot landed between my shoulder blades, keeping me pinned face first in the dirt.
Unable to move or get to my feet, I lifted my head, finding Kelvar, sword drawn and staring at me with murder in his eyes.
I didn’t even need the strange connection between us to feel the way his magic roiled and raged, ready to explode out in an almighty wave.
He could level this camp. He could kill everybody in this clearing with a swipe of his arm. I had seen the destructive power that lurked under his skin. Kelvar could save me, but at a price I was not willing to pay.
“Wait!” I shouted around a mouthful of dust. I said the word out loud at the same time as I tugged on the strange tether between us. Kelvar stiffened, as did everybody else in the large audience that had now gathered to watch the commotion.
“A duel,” I panted. “Such matters should be decided with a duel of honor.”
I couldn’t live with the all-out destruction of this clan on my behalf, but one clean death could buy peace.
Lord Deryn sneered, “And why would I agree to this duel when I have already gained what I want?” He nodded at me where I lay on the ground.
I tried to push to my hands and knees, but the man with the boot on my back bore down harder, grinding his heel into my spine painfully. I gasped, and lightning crackled in the air as Kelvar’s anger flared.
“Do you truly think your men would still live if your Warlord wished them dead?” I asked, even as my voice was thin with pain. “They are only alive by my mercy. Because I haven’t told Kelvar to kill them yet.”
Lord Deryn blanched, and the pressure on my back lessened slightly.
“If you refuse to duel with Kelvar, you may as well admit that he is more skilled than you,” I continued. “And strength is the highest law of the Ballan Desert. Refuse to duel him, and you are admitting you are an unfit Lord.”
He bristled, but the murmuring of the crowd around us told me I had hit a nerve. Kelvar had only been controlled by his disinterest in more power. But just as I was no longer going to allow anybody to deny me my freedom, he would no longer be a weapon.
Neither of us could be controlled anymore.
A metallic shink marked Lord Deryn drawing his blade and turning it toward Kelvar.
“A duel of honor it is. No magic, just our skill with a blade,” he agreed.
I almost admired the bravery in his firm tone, but it wasn’t quite enough to hide the trembling of his hands.
Kelvar was a fearsome opponent, and duels in the desert only ended one way.
“The victor will be the Lord of Clan Katal, and the desert will drink the blood of the defeated and be sated,” Kelvar declared.
“The desert gives, and it takes,” Lord Deryn agreed.
Everybody in the vicinity backed away as Lord Deryn began to circle, creating an open space for their battle. I found myself dragged backward by the man who had pinned me down. I scrabbled back on my hands, barely noticing as I refused to rip my gaze from Kelvar.
While the Lord circled him, searching for openings, Kelvar remained preternaturally still, simply pivoting in place. His feet were planted, and he held his over-long saber before him with its tip pointed at the ground.
He seemed nearly unprepared, like an easy target. But his magic was pulled taut, like a bowstring ready to spring forward with lethal efficiency.
Lord Deryn sprang forward, incomprehensibly fast. Kelvar was faster, though, stepping to the side and throwing his own blade out. Lord Deryn was barely able to stay his momentum enough to avoid slicing himself in half.
He stumbled, and Kelvar pressed the advantage, pushing forward with a flurry of blows. Lord Deryn got his saber up in time to block them, and sparks flew from the clash of their blades, dancing in the deepening twilight.
I gasped as Lord Deryn managed to parry one of Kelvar’s blows, shoving it aside and creating an opening.
He stabbed forward, straight at Kelvar’s chest. But Kelvar moved inconceivably fast for his size, lunging sideways and ducking low.
The blow whistled over his head, and he came up under Lord Deryn’s guard.
The crowd hissed in unison as Kelvar slammed the pommel of his saber into Lord Deryn’s face.
His head snapped back and he stumbled away, blood streaming from his nose.
Kelvar advanced, and I could feel the thrill of battle singing in his blood second hand, but still enough to be all-consuming and intoxicating.
Kelvar fought like I healed: With every fiber of his consciousness.
He swung his saber down in a brutal overhead strike. Lord Deryn lifted his weapon just in time to defend himself, and their hilts caught. They bore down on each other, limbs shaking and teeth bared. Lord Deryn was taller, but Kelvar’s added bulk made him difficult to overcome.
Kelvar gained the upper hand, driving Lord Deryn to his knees, but he still didn’t let his guard drop. Instead, a potent mix of fear and fury sparked in Deryn’s eyes.
“I was the one who recognized your power, and you thank me by betraying me for some woman,” he hissed.