Chapter 74
The weight of the winex took Aeliana down, and her legs got tangled in her skirts, which ripped beneath Felk’s claws.
She managed to keep hold of her dagger, but she couldn’t bear to use it, so she let that hand drift to the side.
Hot breath reeking of fish and spoiled fruit swept over her face, and sharp teeth filled her vision.
“It’s me, Felk!”
The snarls turned to the low hum of a growl, more like a warning than the start of an attack. “Are you Aeliana?” he ground out, his eyes conflicted. But the sound of her name on his lips brought a rush of relief.
“Yes. I’m Aeliana.”
He cocked his head once again and sniffed more deeply. Then he stepped back, allowing her room to sit up and catch her breath.
“Do you—do you remember me?” They’d been apart for three cycles. It wasn’t possible.
He shook his head, baring his teeth. From the rags at his waist, he pulled out a crumpled piece of parchment, then smoothed it out on the ground between them.
She bent over to take in the perfect calligraphy she recognized as Orra’s handwriting.
“Aeliana?” Gaeren called, drawing her attention back up.
He and two other men were at a standstill with the remaining winex, who had taken their cue from Felk and backed off.
Their bodies rippled with the anticipation of an attack, as if the moment Felk gave approval, they would finish off the half-lights before them.
“It’s Felk,” she reassured him. Even the other winex seemed surprised she knew his name, and she hoped it was enough to stay their anger.
She glanced back at the parchment.
You are Felk. You know this deep in your bones.
You are a winex, but you are also a friend of half-lights.
You were saved by Aeliana, who took care of you like you were a son.
You saved her and loved her like she was a mother.
An evil priestess named Mayvus wants to hurt Aeliana.
Mayvus gathers troops at Ahmranan’s Viewpoint and plans to attack Myndren.
She will go after Aeliana next. Don’t let her.
Beneath Orra’s perfect handwriting was Felk’s child-like scrawl.
Your friend Orra, the Star, wrote this letter. It is all true. Protect Aeliana.
Felk
“You don’t remember me,” Aeliana whispered around the lump in her throat. “But you came for me anyway. Just because of this note?”
Felk’s growls intensified. “How do I understand? How can I copy this and it be the same?” He pointed at his signature and his voice rose in agitation. “And I know it was me. How can I know? My clan doesn’t know it, but I do.”
She smiled. “Because I taught you to read and write.”
He winced, as though the idea pained him. “Why?”
“Because we’re friends. Just like your letter says.
” She hadn’t had the opportunity to practice the noetic skills she’d pulled from Durriken for several days.
Hadn’t wanted to since she needed to focus on regaining her somatic skills.
But this seemed like a time worth testing them once more.
“Can I show you?” She held out a hand near his arm.
He shrank back, snarling as he glanced between her hand and face.
When she didn’t move, his gaze flicked to the parchment once more.
He didn’t trust her, and she tried not to let that hurt.
But at least he seemed willing to trust his former self enough to hear her out, because he eventually held his arm out for her to grasp.
The memories she pushed at him were messy.
She recalled them out of order and knew they held more impressions than actual moments.
But she felt his arm relax under hers as she continued feeding him shared experiences of her caring for him, training him, and laughing with him.
Times where they cooked together, played together, and fought together.
Moments where he defended her and where she defended him.
It was difficult magic she wasn’t yet used to, and as her starlock heated, she sensed the power draining too quickly.
So she pulled back, hoping he’d seen enough. The glazed look in his eyes cleared, and his jaw slackened, revealing the dozens of teeth she’d feared moments before.
“Not friends,” he said, eyes misty. “Family.”
She nodded. “Gaeren could show you more. His skill is far greater than mine.” Felk glanced at Gaeren, then took in the sight of his clan still in their defensive positions.
He stood to his full height and held his palms up before jerking them down in some sort of motion that signaled for his clan to stand down.
They skulked away, the disappointment evident as they glared at the people they’d been prepared to attack.
“How did you even find me?” Aeliana asked Felk as Gaeren approached. She rose and dusted off her ruined skirts, passing the letter Gaeren’s way.
Felk pulled another wad from his loincloth, making Aeliana grimace.
“Your smell.” He held the dingy blue cloth to his nose and inhaled.
Aeliana recognized it as a scrap from what had once been her skirt, one she’d left behind after replacing it with the traveling leathers she’d since grown to appreciate.
“Orra gave it to you?”
He shrugged. “It was in my nest. The letter too.”
“That’s still such a long way, with such a small scent,” Aeliana mused, but then she let the mystery go and smiled. “I’m so glad you’re here. It’s so good to see you.”
“Not good.” Felk glanced back toward the busier parts of the city.
“Why not?” Aeliana asked.
“Oh, no,” Gaeren murmured, passing the parchment back to Aeliana, except this time he showed her the back side, where the scribbles held little organization.
A comment was left here or there, some upside down or facing left or right.
Phrases like “Cycle two, day fifteen” or “Cycle one, day twenty-eight” labeled each comment, forcing Aeliana to spin the parchment around to try to piece the notes together in order.
But four words that she couldn’t ignore stood out.
Mayvus sails to Elanesse.
“No,” Aeliana murmured, turning the parchment faster and trying to make sense of the other phrases.
Count ships
IIIII IIIII IIIII II
Follow ships
Protect Myndren Protect Elanesse
Mayvus bad
Aeliana good - Sylmar? Emeris?
Blue cloth - Aeliana
Mayvus sails west - not Myndren
Protect Elanesse
Protect Aeliana
“She didn’t even go after Myndren,” Aeliana murmured. “My mother could have stayed.”
Felk leaned over her shoulder and pointed at a phrase. “Yesterday. In swamps.” Then he pointed northwest of Elanesse, beyond the city’s harbor. Aeliana looked back at the phrase, and her starlock grew cold against her chest.
See ships! Run!
“Yesterday? How much time do we have before she gets here?” Even as she asked the question, she knew the answer. The merchants attending the wedding had been excited to return to their shops and taverns because they’d seen dozens of trade ships arriving.
Except they weren’t trade ships.
Felk whined like a dog holding back a howl. “None. She’s here.”