Chapter 54 Astrid
“Not much farther,” she murmurs to Bastet.
She can feel him slowing, sense the weariness as each beat of his wings becomes more labored.
Her body objects to the smallest movement after flying through the night, and the last vial of healing solution hasn’t helped the feeling that she’s been battered by a dread of dragons.
They’re at the very north of Sarkan’s Pass, the Heart ironically housed not far from the Arturean border, but the vast canyons here are so wide and so deep, it’s almost impossible to pass over the border on foot.
Bruma and Ziva are still patrolling the skies, but Mjolnir had guided their group under cover of darkness, and even had them detour over the Doelstrum Straits on the north-west coast to avoid the water and solar dragons.
Astrid reaches out with her Gift, searching for a link to Zryan, but all she can sense is the cool ash of Skylar and the soft kiss of dusk that is Bastet—the two parts of her soul that sit outside of her body.
She and Skylar haven’t had a chance to talk about it, about anything really, not with the urgency with which they’ve been flying to the Heart.
To Zryan. Her lungs seize, as they do every time she thinks of him.
They won’t hurt him, she’s sure of it. Even if the king wanted to punish his son for his rebellion, the queen would never stand for it—she loves her son and Astrid is relying on that.
We’ll land down there, Skylar says, and Astrid shivers, wondering if she’ll ever get used to someone speaking inside her mind.
Astrid can just about see Skylar point from where she sits, little more than a dot, on the back of Mjolnir.
There’s a particularly craggy area with crevices deep enough to fit a full-grown dragon, thirsty-looking trees dotting the landscape.
Mjolnir says there’s an entrance to where they’re housing the Heart about an hour away on foot.
He doesn’t want to risk flying closer until he has to.
What do you mean “until he has to”?
He’s going to distract the dragons, keep the focus on him so we can slip in unnoticed.
She can hear the tension in Skylar’s voice.
Two dragons versus one isn’t great odds, even for Mjolnir.
She throws a prayer up to Sqa?i just as the last few stars disappear from the early morning sky, asking the Goddess to protect them.
It can’t be they survived the duel only for them to die on this rescue mission instead.
She pulls out her trusty tincture and swallows the last of it.
Her stomach leaps as Bastet descends sharply. A few moments later they land, hard, her bones rattling. She jumps off him. “Don’t lie down yet. You need water.” There’s a stream nearby, but Bastet’s already sprawled on the ground, tongue lolling out of his mouth.
FOOD, ASTRID. I FEAR I MAY PERISH.
Kaida bounds over and Astrid waves her down.
“Careful, careful, Kaida. Bastet is very tired, so you have to be gentle.” The dragon is almost as big as Bastet now and completely unaware of her own strength.
Kaida chirrups happily before curling against his belly and immediately falling asleep. Oh, to be young and unburdened.
“How’s he doing?” Skylar is carrying a large fish of some sort and Astrid frowns at her.
“This is for B. Mjolnir caught it.” She chucks it to Bastet, who greedily begins gnawing away at it.
Astrid holds a hand up in thanks to the thunder dragon, but he doesn’t notice, reptilian eyes focused on the heavens above him.
“Yeah, he’s okay.” Astrid lowers her voice. “I’m just worried about him being spent before we even get inside there. We’ve no idea what’s waiting for us.”
“I know.” Skylar’s eyes dart to Kaida. “But we can’t waste any time either if we’re going to save your boyfriend.”
Astrid snorts. “He’s your brother.”
“Yes, but he’s your problem. I’m only here for you—little brother can look after himself.”
Astrid finds herself taking Skylar’s hand, the action so natural and comforting, she wonders how she never realized before that Skylar was her mate. Skylar doesn’t pull away, just squeezes her fingers as they start walking toward the stream.
“I never knew mates could be…” Astrid begins, not sure how to put it.
“Not into banging each other?” Skylar says, and Astrid laughs.
“Sure, let’s go with that. But it explains Nyx and Aeloria now.”
Skylar turns to her. “What about them?”
“They were mates, or at least I’m pretty sure they were.
I’d no clue how they could have been when they ruled separate countries, had their own families.
But they must have been like us.” Astrid still can’t believe it, but the mate marks are right there—proving the truth of it.
Skylar has a constellation, though not Sqa?i’s.
It’s a constellation Astrid doesn’t recognize.
And Astrid has a flame for Skylar. Which seems fitting, for the Heir of Fire. “Mates who are, well. Mates. Friends.”
“Did you have any idea?” Skylar stops, releasing Astrid’s hand to scoop up some water. Astrid crouches next to her, doing the same.
“Not at all. The Blood Binding connection threw me off, maybe.”
“Yeah, me too.” They sit quietly, drinking.
“How do you feel about it? Being connected to me for the rest of your life? Which, to be fair, could be not very long at all.” Skylar sounds vulnerable, and Astrid’s heart squeezes. Skylar, who has been alone for so long. Who has had the very few people she ever loved taken from her.
Astrid hugs her, and Skylar stiffens before hugging her back.
“First of all, I’m used to having death on my doorstep.
I’ve lived my entire life believing I might die at any point and knowing I’d definitely die at twenty-four.
So we might not have very long to live, but I will cherish every second more I get to live with you as my mate.
” Astrid pulls back so she can see Skylar’s face.
“I lost a sister in Vatra, but I found one, too.”
Skylar’s amber eyes blink rapidly, then she hurls herself on Astrid, the hug practically strangling her. “I’m so sorry for what I said in the arena, I didn’t mean it. I just wanted you to kill me.”
Astrid chuckles. “I understand, but, Skylar? Don’t ever try and make me kill you again. Or I’ll fucking kill you.”
Her mate laughs, coarse and throaty. “It’s so funny when you swear. It’s like hearing your granny swear.”
Astrid punches her in the arm. “My Grandma Tania used to swear like an Ulven. Gram used to scold her for it constantly.”
“I never knew mine. It was always just me and my mum, until it wasn’t.
She never even told me where her family was from, just said they lived somewhere very far away and that one day, this”—she pulls the pin from her hair—“would guide me home.” She twiddles it, before knotting it back in her hair.
“Maybe she meant you. It would guide me to you.”
Astrid presses her lips together. She’d felt it, too, that connection through the hairpin.
“I’m glad you still have something of hers.
” She takes Skylar’s hand and twists the ring on her finger.
“And of his.” She reaches for the pendant, reassuring herself it’s still there.
Does the same with the cuffs her dad gave her.
“Me, too,” Skylar says quietly. “I wonder if he’s… in there.”
She means his body, and Astrid’s fist clenches at the thought.
“Cam is not there, not the real him. He’s at peace, I promise you that.
But, Skylar, we won the duel—both of us.
” Astrid stands, lifting Skylar with her and linking their arms. “You are queen of Vatra, whether your father likes it or not, and I’m queen of Arturea.
Maybe only in name for now. But we will do everything we can to put a stop to all of this, together. ”
They walk back toward the familiar and the dragons, Skylar’s eyes on Kaida curled up by Bastet.
“Together,” Skylar repeats, an edge to her voice. “Let’s go see where this Heart is, then, shall we? See if it’s worth all the trouble it’s put us through.”
“There’s something here, I can feel it,” Skylar murmurs.
They’re crouching beneath a ledge jutting out of the canyon face.
This close Astrid can see the striations of the rock, and it’s like a spectrum of Skylar; red, gold, brown, and amber.
Is this what it’s like to be mated? She’s now seeing her mate in a rock?
Get a grip, Astrid. Her eyes carry on traveling along the canyon, but she can’t see an entrance of any kind.
“There’s no way through here,” Astrid says.
“There’s some kind of force field. It’s hiding the entrance.” Like the way through the Isfjell mountains, Astrid thinks. “And if we try and step through it, it’ll do something horrible to us.” Skylar grins at that and Astrid shakes her head. Still a liability.
“Well, let’s avoid that. You think you can drain the wards?”
“With your help I can. Power me up?”
WAIT, Bastet interrupts, nose twitching. I CAN SMELL HUMANS CLOSE BY. TWO OF THEM.
“Then we’re in the right place; they’ll be the guards.”
Astrid palms her Masking Mist, pours it over all of them. “This will buy us a few seconds.” She goes for another vial but realizes she only has two left, neither of which are helpful in this situation.
“We won’t need a few seconds,” Skylar says with a grim smile.
How is she being so casual about all this?
Astrid feels like her insides are crawling out of her body.
For Zryan, she keeps reminding herself. For the Heart.
Though they’d agreed the priority was Zryan for now.
Until they could regroup in Arturea, find her mother and the Ulvene, and bring reinforcements to secure the Heart properly.