Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
Alvara left the forge at the same time as Sithuren later that week, not wanting to appear lazy or ungrateful. She did so every day, even when the very sound of the metal made her grit her teeth so hard, she was surprised they hadn’t chipped.
She spotted a figure off in the distance arguing with a guard inside the safety of the city wall. Her curiosity piqued, Alvara sauntered toward the conflict, and something about the elf’s demeanor poked at her memory. As soon as she came close enough to see his face, Alvara froze.
Boden.
That godsdamned bastard. He was probably here to capture her and drag her back to Ela. The day she let that happen would be the day Vitharen came back to life.
She rushed toward the gate and knocked Boden to the ground with a sudden blast of ice.
The show of controlled magic stunned both him and the guards (and herself, if she was being honest), and she leapt on top of his body and pinned him with her knees, her father’s dagger at his throat.
She dug hard enough that a line of blood dripped down his neck.
“Lovely to see you too,” he muttered, lifting his hands back in mock surrender. “Though if you would kindly put away your dagger, I’d rather not stain my favorite shirt.”
“Alvara!” Aurilena clamped her hands around Alvara’s shoulders and tugged her off him. “What in Helvahem do you think you’re doing?” she asked as she pulled Boden to his feet.
Alvara gaped. Didn’t she know who he was?
“He works for King Einar,” she said, still pointing her father’s dagger in his direction.
“We’re well aware of that fact.” Aurilena looked at her as if she had lost her wits. “Put your damn knife away, he’s on our side.”
Boden wiped away the trail of crimson on his skin and inspected his tunic. “And you stained it. Damn it, that will take hours to get out.”
“Shut it.” Alvara poked the tip of her blade into his chest. He looked at her with utter boredom, raised the very earth under her feet, and tipped her onto her back. Her head cracked against the frozen ground, and spots speckled her vision.
Aurilena’s golden gaze darted between them. “What happened between you two?”
“Nothing I’d care to discuss after the week I’ve had.” Boden rubbed at his shirt as he strolled toward the food hall.
Alvara shot to her feet and marched after him. “You helped me bury my father and then betrayed me, you conniving pig!”
The muscles in Boden’s neck twitched, but he didn’t slow or turn. “I’ve been called worse.”
Aurilena whistled and shook her head. “That sounds like a story I need to hear.”
“Who are you?” Alvara asked as she followed him into the building, her voice as cold as steel.
“We’ve already met, Alvara. Though I do normally try not to introduce myself while burying bodies in the middle of the night. I’m Boden. Saved your life, made you disgusting tea, and buried your father. Is any of this sounding familiar?”
Pompous words coming from him after what he had done. “Care to add traitor who turned me over to the king’s elves?”
Aurilena smacked Boden’s arm. “You did what?”
“It may appear that way, but I had no idea they were tracking me. I did my best to distract them long enough for you to get away, which it looks like you did. Though I’m having a few regrets about that now.
” He massaged his shoulder where her ice blast had hit.
“Between the two of you, I’m going to lose any ability to move my arm by lunchtime.
At the very least, you do seem to have finally gained some control over your powers.
Now if you could just please stop using them on me, that would be much appreciated. ”
“That was the first time she was able to even summon them.” Aurilena settled into the bench across from Boden, who made a thoughtful noise.
“I’m working on it.” Alvara sank onto the hard wood and resisted the urge to pinch her nose to block out the smell of fowl drifting from the kitchen.
“If by working on it, you mean making no progress whatsoever, then yes, that is definitely what you’ve been doing.” Aurilena grabbed an ale from the table and took a hearty swig of the drink as she looked to Boden. “You should train her.”
“No, definitely not,” Alvara said. The yeasty smell of the drinks nauseated her and dredged up an embarrassing number of memories of dark and seedy taverns.
Aurilena shrugged. “That was the first time you were able to control your magic. It would be worth trying.”
“I’ve already had the unpleasant experience of being frozen head to toe by her,” Boden murmured. “I’d rather not.”
Thank Vitharen. “At least we agree on something.” Alvara rose. She needed to leave Boden’s presence before he sparked her magic again. “I’ll keep attending the academy. I’m sure I’ll make progress soon enough.”
“The academy?” Boden’s voice followed her as she made her way to the exit. “Please don’t tell me they’re making you train with the students.”
Aurilena appeared at her side and pushed the door open. “Meet me in the training grounds tomorrow at dawn. You’ve suffered through the academy classes long enough.”
A small voice in Alvara’s head hissed that training was useless, but she pushed it aside. She could and would master her magic—if only to prove everyone wrong.
Alvara focused on the unforgiving frozen landscape in front of her and willed her body to create something, anything resembling snow.
“Have you even been attending class?” Aurilena asked, arms crossed.
“You mean the class full of younglings decades younger than me? Yes, I’ve been torturing myself there for days.
Where’s Kat?” Not that she would have any better luck around her, but at least she didn’t seem like the type of person to throw Alvara’s failure in her face. She couldn’t say the same for Aurilena.
“On patrol. If you aren’t able to control your powers, you can’t stay here. It’s simple.”
“You say that as if you think that’s not the exact thing I’m trying to do.” Alvara kicked a clump of snow, and it burst into a small shower of white flakes.
“Trying doesn’t matter if you can’t do it.” Aurilena watched flames dance along her fingertips as she spoke. “You think I’m hard on you.” It wasn’t a question.
“I know you’re hard on me.”
Aurilena dropped her hand, extinguishing her magic. “There’s danger in not understanding your powers. And it can destroy the things you love in a heartbeat.” She looked up at the sun, the flaming symbol of her kingdom, and closed her eyes. “This movement, the people here—it’s all I have.”
“And that’s why you’re so…”
“Warm and fuzzy with everyone,” Aurilena said with what Alvara almost dared to call the hint of a smile.
“Things must really not be going well if Aurilena’s resorted to motivational speeches.” Boden leaned against a nearby tree, his tunic clean of their interaction the day before.
Aurilena shot a small fireball into the snow at his feet. “I was trying something new. Your method normally, isn’t it, Boden?”
“He does love to hear himself talk,” Alvara muttered, and a pebble bounced off her head. “Ow!”
“I was happy to let you train her,” Aurilena said, “but you refused. Unless you forgot.”
“I’ve reconsidered,” Boden said, pushing off the tree. “Give me a few hours and I’ll see what I’m able to do.”
“Happily. It’s always too damn cold out here.” Aurilena rubbed her arms and strolled back toward the city, not bothering to stop as she tossed her next comment over her shoulder. “Think about what I said, Alvara.”
That meant Alvara was now left alone with Boden. Anger and shame at her failure with magic heated her skin, and she grabbed her dagger and threw it at the nearest tree. It split the bark in two with a thud.
Boden whistled. “Impressive, but it still isn’t magic.”
Alvara yanked her weapon free. “What are you really doing here?”
“As I’ve said, I’ve decided to help train you. I won’t risk you hurting anyone here due to your lack of control.”
“How chivalrous of you.” There was no way Alvara could handle touching her magic now, not when the very sight of Boden unearthed her father’s corpse and left it to rot alongside her thoughts. She needed to silence it all—lock it away and toss the key in the fire.
So, she barged past him toward the reliable monotony of the forge, even though Sithuren wouldn’t be expecting her for at least a few hours, when her training for the day should have ended.
Boden’s footsteps crunched behind her. “I am only trying to help you, Alvara. You may not believe me, but everything I have done, everything I am doing, is an effort to dig you out of the hole you seem so insistent on hiding in.”
She stopped and clenched her fists, knuckles straining from the effort.
He had no grounds to judge her when he knew nothing of suffering—he worked for a king.
A life spent surrounded by riches and servants.
“That hole? It’s the only thing keeping me sane.
Something I doubt you could even begin to understand.
Thank you for your help, but I won’t be needing it. ”
With that, she headed to the forge to lose herself in her work.
Weapons didn’t heal, but at least they kept their mouths shut and knew when to leave her damn well alone.
Avoiding training the next morning was liberating. Here, dealing with metal instead of unreliable people and even more unreliable magic, this was where she was meant to be. Sithuren had even left for a short time to deliver an order across the city, leaving her in blessed silence.
She struck the weapon before her, sending sparks flying.
“Alvara!” Kat’s voice rang out, a hammer to her fragile peace. “Lena’s waiting for you. She was going to come get you herself, but you know how she is. I thought it’d be better if I talked to you.”
Alvara said nothing as she pounded away at the metal, a delicious burn running through her aching muscles. She tried her best to ignore the memory of her father’s blood-soaked chest each time she glanced at the blade.
“Lena told me to tell you, well, I don’t really agree with it, but she said that didn’t matter. And I told her it did but—”