Chapter 5
CHAPTER FIVE
PHOENIX
Noire would not approve of what I’m about to do. But he doesn’t have to know.
I pull the hood of my cloak tighter over my head to hide my face and pull on the iron bars. The leather of my gloves creaks against the iron, but it doesn’t budge.
“For fuck’s sake,” I curse, my words bouncing off the curved metal walls, the ceiling, and the damp floors.
I’m at the very edge of an old tunnel. It’s tall enough for me to stand without the top of my head scraping the rusted ceiling, and wide enough that at least three of me can line up side by side comfortably.
In front of me is a wall of iron bars. A gate that’s supposed to open without much hassle as it’s one of the many secret entrances to the Ezkai Castle. I am yet to discover them all.
I try to pull on the bars again, to no avail. With a sigh, I lodge my shoulder against them and then push.
And push.
The metal creaks, and the iron gate moves. And then gets stuck. The gap is very small. I might squeeze myself through it on my way out, but coming back in might be an issue.
“Spirits of the gods be damned,” I mutter to myself, “I’ll walk back in through the main fucking entrance.”
Sideways, I shove myself against the narrow gap and squeeze through it. Just as I’m about to be free, the hinges creak again and the gate slides open. Gasping, I grab for the iron bars with one hand and fly through the air with the gate.
My chest heaves when it hits the wall, the impact reverberating through my bones. I lose my grip on the iron bar and fall. I land on the hard ground with soft knees. Slowly, I look up to the opening of the tunnel and the iron gate swaying lightly above my head.
At least, I’ll be able to come back the same way.
Swiftly, I make my way through the castle grounds, shrouded in the shadows. I take the small gate behind the lush, plump orchard instead of the main gate and slip into the city. The air here is different than in the castle grounds.
I know my way to Kazh’s well enough by now. I haven’t seen the old crone since my victory, which has been a little over a month ago. She didn’t attend my inauguration ceremony, which…hurt a little.
I’m not certain she’ll be happy to see me tonight, or even welcome me at her inn considering how against cooperating with the government she is.
But I have to try.
Noire is right. I need my mentor.
Her street is quiet and empty at this time of night. I hope Kazh is still awake.
Once I’m at her door, I knock three times and wait. When she cracks the door open, my mentor doesn’t look surprised to see me.
Kazh throws a glance to my left, then to my right. One eyebrow shoots up. “And where is your escorting Ezkai, General?”
“If I had to guess, either sleeping or patrolling the castle grounds. Maybe playing cards or throwing dice with their mates.”
She curses me in all three tongues. But she moves away from the entry so I can come in. I follow her to the back, right to the kitchen. I’m relieved to see her men are not there.
“I have worked tirelessly to teach you and mold you into a decent enough Ezkai to be a proper fucking General,” she spits, glancing over her shoulder at me. “After everything, I believed that we managed to make you a well-behaved little shit. But here we are.”
I chuckle, more glad to hear her curse me than I want to admit. At least she’s still here, even if unhappy to see me.
She walks up to the wood-burning stove, which holds three large simmering pots. I take a seat at the dining table. She pushes the hot pot of tea and an empty cup towards me. I pour myself some flowery water I have grown to detest less than when I first arrived at Ekios.
I cup my drink between my gloved hands. “Expecting company?”
“Apparently,” Kazh says. Using a big wooden spoon, she swirls whatever is in one of the large copper pots.
It smells nice, like cinnamon and nutmeg.
“I guess Noire didn’t do a good fucking job briefing you on the rules of being an Ezkai General, did he?
And he has the audacity to call himself the Taaslord, and a spy master at that.
Bah! You’re not supposed to wander around outside by yourself, you brainless fetus.
It’s not only inappropriate for the leader of a country, but also fucking dangerous.
As the most powerful woman in this damn land, you have a target on your back. A fat one.”
I can’t help the wide smile that spreads across my face. It’s such a relief to hear her call me all the nasty nicknames, even though I’m the General now.
Nobody ever calls me anything but General since I took the throne. Even Noire.
Well, there’s Jax, but…
Kazh finds my amusement annoying. She looks like she wants to smack me over the head with that big spoon in her hand.
Part of me is tempted to see if she dares.
“I was careful,” I say. “I know you think I only use half of my brain, but I know how to protect myself. Have been doing so for years.”
Kazh snorts, her back to me. “Half a brain is generous.”
I giggle. She mutters something under her breath.
After I finish my tea, she looks at me over her shoulder and jerks her chin.
“What, you think just because you’re a Big Powerful Ezkai General now you just gonna sit there and do nothing?
Get your ass here and help me cook, you ungrateful piece of shit. ”
I get to my feet. “I’m not very good at cooking.”
“Of course you’re not,” she says. “Take off your damn gloves and wash your hands.”
I do as she says. After training half naked with Kazh for months in preparation for the trials, I’m less self-conscious about my scars.
Wearing gloves at all times is a comfort, though.
I have so little of it in my life right now, I’m desperate for even the smallest feel of it I can get.
The moment I finish drying my hands on a linen towel, Kazh pushes a knife into my hands and points a finger at the chopping board. Next to it is a basket full of ripe mangalos. Even without peeling them, I can smell the juicy flesh.
“Peel them all, and de-stone them. If after that you still have all of your fingers intact, I’ll need you to cut them into bite-sized pieces.”
I shoot her a sharp glance. “I don’t know how to cook, but I do know how to handle a blade.”
Kazh snorts, eyes focused on the pot she’s stirring. “A blade in the kitchen is very different from a blade in the battlefield. Watch where you cut.”
This time around, I roll my eyes at her. It’s dark enough, and she’s not looking at me, so I don’t expect her to see it. Yet a piece of carrot flies at me. I manage to dodge it.
“At least I can see your skills are still sharp,” she says. “Not all of my efforts were wasted.”
I grin, but say nothing. Instead, I focus on peeling the thick deep purple skin of the first mangalo.
My mouth waters when the first peel is off, revealing the ripe bloodred flesh of the fruit.
Thick, aromatic juices run down my fingers and drip on the cutting board.
Fruits in Ekios are definitely in my top three reasons why I love it here.
“How about you tell me why you’re here, huh?” Kazh shoots me a sideways glance. “You didn’t risk your safety and disrespect the rules just to come see the old crone in her kitchen.”
I shrug. “And what if I did come see you for you? Would that be so bad?”
“Cut the bullshit, you shithead, and stop wasting my time. What brings you here? Shouldn’t you be busy leading the damn country and making sure all of your ducks are in a row?”
I sigh. For a while, I remain silent while I drive the knife into the ripe fruit and slice it open. Carefully, I cut around the big black stone inside and push it out of the fruit. On to the next one.
“You better move that filthy mouth of yours and speak before I die of old age.”
“I’m not the one with a filthy mouth,” I murmur.
Another piece of carrot flies my way, and I see it too late. It hits the middle of my temple and tumbles down onto the floor. I chuckle.
“I came to see you because I need your help,” I say. “To be a powerful Ezkai General, I need to master what you call the blessed trinity, right? Help me do that.”
“Is being the head of the country not enough power for you?”
Kazh blows out the fire under the large pot of porridge she has been stirring all this time and moves to cut a huge basket of vegetables. She holds the kitchen knife naturally, chopping through carrots fast and precise.
“You know about the blood debt I’m owed. I don’t feel ready to collect it yet,” I say. “I want to master killing with emotional manipulation. I want to be the most lethal General in the history of Ekios. Otherwise, I can’t accomplish what I want to accomplish.”
Kazh looks up from her chopping board. “And what is it that you want to accomplish, General?”
I press my lips into a thin line. “I have a blood debt to claim, an important law to pass, and then I must end the Talbots’ reign once and for all.”
A familiar chuckle echoes at the back of my mind. I’m so tired of Lorca always lurking in my brain.
How about some privacy? I snap at the trickster god.
It only caresses my mind with its fluffy tail and vanishes.
“And what’s after that, shithead?”
I purse my lips. I haven’t thought so far yet.
“Let’s see if I survive to see the end of that before I make any further plans,” I say grimly.
Kazh says nothing.
I pick up another fruit and get to work. After a pause, I say, “Will you help?”
“Your question offends me.”
I put the fruit and the knife down and turn to Kazh.
“I agreed to mentor you before the start of the trials. It’s a relationship for life. One doesn’t stop being one’s mentor, ever.”
I swallow hard and drop my gaze. The backs of my eyes burn.
“Thank you,” I say, my voice thick.
“You’ll be up at four every morning. Pick a spot you like most in the castle grounds, as you’ll be spending three hours every day meditating in it,” she barks. “I’ll meet you there. Every. Morning. Am I clear, shithead?”
“Yes,” I say, nodding.
She jerks her chin at me. “How’s it going with Lorca?”
I return to my mangalos. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
The trickster god chuckles in my mind.
Thankfully, Kazh drops the topic.
After some time working in silence, I ask, “Can I ask you a question?”
Kazh snorts. “Obviously.”
It’s something that’s been on my mind since the Trial of Wisdom.
“How does one bond a dragon?”
Kazh freezes, in that unnatural fae way.
“Not everyone can do that,” Kazh says. She throws me a sideways glance. “You got some crazy thoughts in that small head of yours?”
I shrug. “I don’t know. I was just thinking about it. Everyone would fear an Ezkai General with a dragon. Maybe it would help me pass the law House Dzuni is fighting me on.”
“You’re right, shithead. It’s hard to argue with a General who rides into a battle on top of a damn dragon.”
“I want to try that.”
Kazh arches an eyebrow. “Do what? Bond a dragon? You really are using the last two brain cells today. Bonding with a dragon is no easy feat. One can’t just wake up one day and decide they’ll bond with a dragon.
It’s not meant for every Ezkai, if you haven’t noticed.
It’s a rare gift, you shithead. Though, leave it to you, a spoiled brat, to think it’s going to be easy and destined for you. ”
I wave her off, splashing the mangalo juices all over the kitchen counter.
“No, Kazh. You don’t understand. During the Trial of Wisdom, the dragon I faced but didn’t murder…
I didn’t understand it then, but I felt this weird…
connection with the creature. That’s why I couldn’t just kill it, even when I had the chance.
And when I used the powder to kill the creature’s flame, it was as if I hurt inside myself. ”
Kazh watches me with utmost stillness. I don’t think she’s even breathing.
After a pause, she says, “You should have said something.”
I throw my hands, knife still in one of them. “I didn’t understand it. How could I say something?”
Kazh mutters under her breath.
A wicked smile spreads on my face, hope blooming in my chest. “So, do you think I can do it? Bond a dragon?”
Kazh sighs and shakes her head. “Spirits of the gods help us.”