Chapter 19 Faylinn #2
“Are you accusing me of something, Mage?” I asked, trying to inject calmness into my voice, despite the rising rage.
“I’m trying to ascertain what happened to our General and why we found you both, a day later, entwined together in an empty classroom with modified Bond Marks on your arms,” Sol spat back. Thandi squeezed her shoulder, his knuckles tensing with the force, either in comfort or light restraint.
“That can all be deduced without attacking the Rune Master,” Rohak chided gently, his voice silencing both my rebuttal and whatever else was lying at the tip of Sol’s tongue. His emerald eyes met mine across the room, and I felt rather than heard the question for permission.
“Should we tell them?”
“The servants already know—if this is your council, then they should be aware as well.”
“Show me,” he demanded. With a sigh of regret, I showed him my memories, images that would haunt my dreams for years to come, flashing in quick succession for Rohak to absorb.
The corners of his mouth tightened, his brow pinching, as he relived his own death through my eyes.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t mask the soul-deep agony or unfettered fear I felt as I dragged his lifeless body into the classroom to perform the ritual.
My emotions were deeply attached to my memories, and there was no way to separate the two.
Just as he felt the pang of regret for my actions, I severed the connection, retreating back to my own mind.
Rohak’s eyes never left mine. “Faylinn found me and Bonded me in an effort to save my life. Clearly, that was not in vain as I’m sitting here with you all.”
“But,” Asha spoke from her position on Ben’s lap. One of Ben’s hands kept her tucked firmly against his chest while the other languidly played with her long, copper hair. “That should have been impossible, correct? The General is one of the most powerful Mages we’ve seen, and Faylinn has no magic.”
All eyes swiveled to me, and I began to sweat in earnest under their scrutiny.
“Rune Master?” Sol prodded. I downed the remainder of my whiskey before setting the glass on the cart, the clunk echoing in the study.
“No, it should not have been possible,” I agreed.
“How, then?” Ben’s voice this time.
I cracked my neck.
“I’m sorry. I hoped to tell you this in private,” I projected to Rohak, surprise and unease meeting my words.
“Rohak’s magic is gone,” I said quietly, but it was as if my words cracked like a whip across the study.
“Pardon?” Felix asked.
“His magic. It’s . . . gone,” I reiterated to the shocked faces. “That’s how we were able to Bond. His blood is now the same as mine.”
Sol shifted uneasily in her chair while Ben and Asha refused to look over at Rohak. I felt nothing down the Bond, which concerned me more than the stoic expression on Rohak’s face.
“I . . . speculated as much,” he admitted. Some of the tension bled from the room with his statement, but there was still uneasiness and sorrow from the Bonded Mages.
“Apart from Lex when he returns, it is something I would like to keep within this room,” Rohak continued, his hardened gaze meeting each stare in return.
“The Academy will find out eventually, Rohak,” Sol said, and Rohak grunted in agreement.
“Yes. But it must be on my own terms and after we have Vespera secured once more. Eventually, I will pass both positions to others. Until then, I will act as both General and . . . King. I never used my magic much, anyway. The change shouldn’t be too drastic.”
The others nodded their heads in agreement, and a bit of tension left my shoulders. I knew we would have our own discussion later, but it would be in private, away from prying eyes and ears.
“Where is Mage d’Talionis?” Sol questioned, her eyes flitting from one person to the next. Ben and Asha shrugged while I shook my head.
“I saw him just before I reached Rohak. After that . . .” I shrugged again. “I was a bit too preoccupied with keeping the General alive.”
“He followed Torin and the queen out of Vespera,” Felix supplied quietly. A few eyebrows raised at his declaration.
“Torin took Ellowyn out of Vespera?” Rohak asked, echoing all of our thoughts.
Felix nodded once in confirmation, adjusting slightly in his seat.
As he relaxed, the sleeve of his tunic inched upward, exposing the base of a rune tattoo on his wrist. He hastily covered it, but winked when he saw me looking.
Odd.
“Yes. I would imagine he was taking her back to the rebel camp. It was his plan from the beginning.”
“And you never felt fit to tell us this?” Rohak asked, his voice low and dangerous as he leaned forward in his chair.
Felix, either oblivious to the tension or in spite of it, smiled, the corners around his jovial brown eyes crinkling. “That was not part of my mission.”
His words, mixed with the inkling of a tattoo I saw, formed a clear picture in my mind. A wry laugh escaped my mouth at the realization.
“You work for Fate,” I said with a bit of scorn, happy that I didn’t slip and call him my grandfather. That was a secret I wanted to keep close for a bit longer.
“Your grandfather?” Rohak’s incredulity echoed down the Bond.
Oops. Too late.
I shot him a disparaging look, urging him to keep that bit of information to himself, but I needn’t have worried. Rohak’s face was as impassive as ever, nothing betraying his emotion other than a slight tick in his eyebrows.
“I do,” Felix admitted as everyone tried to talk over each other.
“What does that mean?”
“So where does your allegiance actually lie?”
“How are we supposed to trust you?”
“Enough,” Rohak barked, rising from his chair.
Instantly, the four other Mages and Vessels fell silent.
“That is a revelation we can deal with another day. For now, I brought you all here to update me on the state of Vespera and our people while helping me find solutions for what has happened. We have a city and Academy to rebuild, people to house and feed, an army to bolster, graves to dig, funerals to attend, and mothers and widows to comfort. If you cannot help me with that, then I suggest you leave.”
When no one moved or spoke, Rohak continued with a pleased nod. My eyes were drawn to his hands, tanned and calloused from work, as he straightened his tunic unnecessarily.
“Good. Now, first, I would like some advice from you both”—he gestured with his finger between Sol and Ben—“about how to settle a newly formed Bond.”
Ben choked as Asha’s ears burned as red as her hair. Sol’s light-brown skin flushed with a rosy hue, and even Thandi’s ebony complexion seemed to darken in response.
“What?” Rohak asked when no one responded. I covered a cough in my shoulder, content to let him receive the awkward advice that was sure to follow.
“Uhm, well, you know,” Ben started, his eyes focusing on anything but the General. “Have you, you know.”
Rohak’s dark eyebrows furrowed over confused eyes. “Have I what?”
“You know,” Ben said with a flippant gesture of his hand.
“He’s asking if you’ve had sex, General,” Sol said, discomfort lacing every word. Ben choked on air again as Rohak’s face burned bright red.
“That’s none of your business—”
“That’s how we settled the Bond, General,” Asha spoke up, her light, kind voice assuaging some of Rohak’s embarrassment.
“Oh,” he simply said, his hard eyes finding mine.
I shrugged with a small laugh. “I tried to ask you about it earlier, but . . .”
Rohak cut me off with a grunt and sharp wave of his hand.
“Yes, General. Lots and lots of sex is how you settle the Bond,” Ben added, and I rolled my eyes at his sophomoric antics.
“That is not an option for us,” Rohak said, voice cold and eyes flashing with pain.
“Closeness helps,” Sol added, lacing her fingers with Thandi.
“When you first healed me and unintentionally Bonded me to Thandi”—Sol’s eyes found mine—“we couldn’t consummate the Bond.
Not until we approached his community in the south.
No matter how much the Bond pushed us, we were not allowed to lie together until his matriarch gave ultimate approval. ”
“So what did you do instead?” I asked, curious how they resisted the pull from the Bond for so long. My admiration grew for the fiery Air Mage and her silent Vessel.
A smile played along her full lips, and I immediately knew Rohak would be uncomfortable with her answer.
“Everything but.”
As predictable as ever, the tips of Rohak’s ears instantly reddened, and he shuffled awkwardly in his chair as Sol continued.
“We slept in the same bed every night. There was lots of touching involved,” Sol said. Thandi’s face broke into a dazzling smile, one that Sol returned earnestly. “Skin on skin contact helped immensely.”
“That . . . actually makes a lot of sense,” I mused, already reaching for the journal in my belt.
I flipped to one of the many pages on Bonds and wrote in an empty margin.
“It’s clear that the Bond craves intimacy.
So, naturally, it would at least be tempered by physical contact and proximity.
Though I wonder about how long that would feed it and what the side effects would be from prolonged avoidance—”
I trailed off as the room grew silent apart from my charcoal scratching against the page. I was met with five amused stares and one that held nothing but adoration. My skin burned where Rohak’s gaze wrapped around me like a lover’s caress.
Reluctantly, I put my book away.
“I—I can finish my notes later,” I said half-heartedly.
“Whatever you need, Faylinn,” Rohak interjected, but I shook my head.
“No, we should discuss what you called us here for. The people of Vespera are far more important than my little musings.”
Rohak inclined his head toward me in understanding and acceptance before taking his seat once more.
“Let’s start with the number of missing and dead.”