Chapter Twenty Nine
Sun Under A Waning Moon
???
The Thilene, Loros.
Kyra.
Someone uttered her name.
In the stuffy darkness of Kawai’s cabin that she’d somehow become quite fond of, Kyra’s name had been whispered. But the door remained firmly closed, and the voice had been unaccompanied by telling footsteps.
Perhaps it had been Kawai? She lay motionless in the bunk, ears straining. If Kawai was in the cabin but had not announced himself, and was just watching her sleep… well, that would be really fucking strange.
Though even as the thought arose, she was quite sure the raider was still on deck with Boony and Jak, where she’d seen him just an hour or so before, all three of them drinking themselves into a stupor. They did that a lot.
Maybe she’d simply imagined the voice.
She punched the lumpy pillow into a more comfortable position, sighed, then closed her eyes once more.
‘I’m glad one of us is able to sleep.’
Fuck.
Kyra’s dagger, always stowed beneath her pillow, was gripped in her hand quicker than the bunk groaned with her shifting weight, as she jumped to her feet and brandished it in front of her.
The cabin was pitch black. But she knew that voice without needing to ignite the gaslamp swinging above the bunk.
A dim, warm light suddenly illuminated the cabin. But it was not coming from the lamp.
It was coming from her.
The setting sun itself had crept under her skin and was shining beneath it, emitting a subtle yet shimmering golden gleam.
Xusyn’s power.
But the monster within was not purring. In fact, she could barely feel it there at all.
She couldn’t ponder it, not as the dense darkness was banished, revealing a towering figure in the corner of the cabin. Kyra’s heart thundered in her chest. ‘You.’
The Fire Warden stepped forward, his wide eyes raking over Kyra’s glowing skin as though she were an alien creature of unfathomable beauty he just could not comprehend.
His gaze met hers, unblinking. ‘Who else knows?’
The dagger remained a barrier between them. ‘Knows what?’
‘This,’ he said simply, gesturing softly at her. Every damn glowing part. ‘You.’
Kyra didn’t reply, instead silently begging the monster beneath her skin to dim. It ignored her completely. In fact, she could have sworn, as if just to spite her, that it glowed a little brighter.
The Fire Warden took a step forward. ‘Who knows you can wield the power of the sun, Kyra Daeiros?’
Kyra couldn’t make sense of the quiet desperation on his face. As though the way in which she answered was critical.
She hadn’t admitted it even to herself. Though she’d known for some time that it was not just earth magic that had attached itself to her soul.
The day she’d destroyed the mercenaries in that alleyway, she’d known. It had flared unfathomably bright beneath her eyelids as the earth simultaneously gripped her to the ground. Then again at the top of the Floating Mountains with Naal, it had shone. Controlling her. Begging for release.
Every kill she’d ever made, every rush of jubilant triumph had come from it. Never satiated. Always wanting more and more and more. An abyss that could never be filled.
The earth magic was different. She’d learned to differentiate the two since her power had come forth. Roheia’s power was docile. It worked with her, whereas the sun… the sun wanted complete control.
She hadn’t even told Naal. But she was sure the Air Warden knew, had guessed that day on the Peak. ‘No one,’ she whispered. ‘No one knows.’
Something like relief flitted across the Fire Warden’s face. ‘Keep it that way.’
‘Don’t give me orders,’ Kyra snapped at him, forgetting her fear. ‘What the fuck are you even doing here? Why are you projecting to me?’
He surveyed her, then after a moment, the shadows in his eyes fractionally lifted. She could have sworn the corners of his mouth pulled. ‘I thought it would be a nice way to pass the time.’
‘Do you not have other things to do where you are?’ Kyra asked coldly. ‘No more cities to decimate or lives to destroy?’
The phantom smile vanished. ‘Where do you think I am?’
‘At the side of your beloved Empress, I would have thought. Ready to relay every word of this conversation. Surely you’re here by her order?’
‘I am not in Dracyg.’
‘Where, then?’
‘Somewhere even the Empress of Zarynth cannot reach.’
‘Where?’
He replied blankly, ‘I expect you’ll find out soon enough.’ As he moved closer, Kyra gripped her dagger tighter. Noticing the movement, the Fire Warden arched a dark eyebrow. ‘That won’t do much against a projection.’
‘You never know,’ she countered. ‘This isn’t a normal projection. Perhaps it can be harmed by the physical.’
A pause. Then- ‘Why don’t you test that theory, Earth Warden?’
It was said mildly, as if he were genuinely interested in the outcome. But in his eyes of night, Kyra saw a challenge dancing like flames.
She rose to it without hesitation, and slashed her wrist upward.
When the dagger simply moved through him instead of into him, as though he were nothing more than air, Kyra muttered, ‘What a shame. It would have been good to know we had one less enemy in the world to contend with.’
His gaze pierced her face. He said slowly, ‘I am not your enemy, Kyra.’
Kyra desperately ignored the sudden fluttering of her pulse. ‘Then leave me the fuck alone.’
He took a small step back, inclined his head in a formal, gentlemanly fashion, then vanished into the darkness.
It was only then that the sun beneath Kyra’s skin finally dimmed.
???
At some point, after almost two weeks at sea, Kyra’s stomach finally resigned itself to the rocking motion of the ship. No longer plagued by nausea all hours of the day, life on board the Thilene became significantly more bearable.
Even if every single islet of Loros she and Naal scoured for the lost Water Warden ended up being a dead end. Naal had told her that magic, especially Warden magic, left traces. And as two Wardens themselves, Naal assured her, Kano’s power (if he was even using it) should be apparent.
That’s if they were on the right fucking track in the first place.
Naal had given her multiple gentle yet nudging reminders that the one person who could help them was Kawai. That, if they had his allegiance and trust, finding the Water Warden would be a lot easier.
It wasn’t for lack of trying. He was still the flirtatious, winking fool he’d been when they’d first met, yet every time Kyra attempted to strike up an actual conversation with him, he conveniently found somewhere else to be. Something else to do. He had become an expert in avoiding her.
As though he knew exactly who it was they were looking for.
It wasn’t just her magic practice that kept her on deck one starry night, which, for some unfathomable reason, she had actually begun to master.
She was creating wards, levitating objects, mastering combat-force spells as if she’d been doing it her whole life.
It was like a code she’d cracked, a riddle she’d finally solved.
It was the wrong fucking riddle though. She was the Earth Warden. What good was normal, mortal magic to her? What good would a few combat spells be, in the face of Zarynth’s armies?
Thankfully, through the Goddess’ mercy perhaps, she hadn’t accidentally projected to the Fire Warden again.
Nor had he projected to her. However, she wasn’t entirely convinced that meant she had control of it, and found herself anxious that her spirit would soar to him each time she practised with Naal.
Perhaps the fear of it happening again was halting her progress…
Kyra shoved the thought far away.
Sat with her back against the mast, she listened to the ever-changing conversations of Kawai, Jak and Boony as they sat around an upturned barrel drinking ale out of tankards as big as her head.
She could have sworn she felt his attention on her more than once, but kept rooted to the spot, waiting for him to be curious enough (and perhaps drunk enough) to come to her.
They were laughing, Kawai the loudest, exchanging their favourite past raids gone wrong.
Kyra heard every bit of it, her pointed fae ears picking up every word: A cursed ring that made Boony’s fingers swell thrice the size, Jak being bitten by a poisonous pet snake protecting its owners golden goods, and an older seductress who found Kawai rifling through her jewels and said he could take whatever he wanted if he ended her two year dry spell…
‘And did you?’ Boony demanded.
There was a pause. The smug grin in his voice was unmistakable as Kawai replied, ‘What do you think?’
The other two cackled along with a clink of tankards and quiet followed as they all took a swig.
‘Hang on… how old are we talking?’ Boony asked.
‘Well, she was fae. Hard to tell. They don’t age like us, do they?’
‘Whoa,’ Jak said, his voice dripping with awe. ‘I’ve never been with a fae. I reckon it’d be wild.’
Kawai snorted. ‘You’d be eaten alive, Jak. Once you’ve figured out what to do and where to put it, then, and only then, should you consider bedding a fae.’
Boony chortled, slamming his tankard on the barrel. Jak laughed too, though he mumbled, ‘You’re a prick.’
‘Don’t say I didn’t warn you, my friend,’ Kawai said.
Kyra couldn’t help it; she cleared her throat, letting them know she was there, and that she’d heard the whole conversation.
They went quiet, then Boony whispered, ‘Is it the earth girl?’
‘Girl?’ Kyra asked incredulously, standing and side stepping around the mast. She casually leaned a hand against it, the other firmly on her hip. ‘Do I look like a child to you?’
Boony blushed profusely, the colour clashing horribly with his wavy orange hair. ‘No, er… sorry.’
‘You wanna join us?’ Jak asked quickly, his eyebrows rising expectantly. Kyra glanced at Kawai, but he was staring at his tankard, a wry sort of smile on his lips. His nonchalance irked her.
She flipped her hair over her shoulder. ‘Sure. I’d love to give my fae insight.’
Kawai was distinctly nonplussed. Boony blushed again, and Jak practically ran to the starboard side to fetch her a seat. He returned with a wooden bucket that he slammed upside down in between himself and Kawai.
Jak was younger than the other two, surely no older than seventeen. Boony was definitely the oldest of them, possibly early thirties, though his disposition was much more reserved now that Kyra had joined their party. Quite the contrast to Jak’s puppy-like energy.
‘Do you like ale?’ the latter asked, then added apologetically, ‘It’s pretty much all we’ve got.’
‘You mean you don’t have any vintage Sarlalian wine?’
Jak’s face dropped. Kawai snickered. ‘She’s joking, Jak.’
Kyra gave the young waterling a dazzling smile. ‘Ale is fine.’
Jak ran off again in search of another tankard. Kyra drummed her nails on the barrel and basked in the awkward silence that followed. Each time she caught Boony’s eye, he looked away and glanced at Kawai, who still had that same, stupid smirk on his face.
She had the strange feeling she’d been the topic of one of their conversations before.
‘So, is this your club?’ Kyra asked Kawai directly, breaking the weird silence.
Kawai frowned. ‘Club?’
‘Your drinking club.’
He laughed. ‘Yeah. I suppose it is.’
‘I thought you said it was just you.’
‘I recruited. It got boring drinking alone,’ he said with a shrug.
Jak placed a full tankard of ale in front of her, the contents slopping over the side a little in his excitement, and plonked himself back onto his own seat. ‘If we’d known you like ale, we would have invited you to drink with us sooner.’
‘I like anything with the ability to inebriate, Jak.’ Kyra took a sip. It wasn’t the best ale she’d ever had, but it definitely wasn’t the worst. She wiped her lips with the back of her hand. ‘Anyway, Naal and I have been pretty busy.’
Offhandedly, Kawai pried, ‘Doing what?’
‘Oh, you know, just important things.’ Kawai did look at her then, and Kyra fought to keep her expression cool under his knowing stare.
Jak blurted quite suddenly, ‘What’s it like being the Earth Warden?’
Kyra forced herself not to look at Kawai. She scoffed. ‘I’m not the Earth Warden.’
Boony shoved his red glowing face into his tankard. Jak’s wide eyes blinked at her. And Kawai looked as though he was holding back a laugh.
Through gritted teeth, Kyra demanded, ‘What did you tell them?’
‘Nothing that isn’t true.’
‘It’s not-’
‘Oh, spare me,’ Kawai said indignantly. ‘You don’t expect everyone to believe you’re actually Naal’s relative?’
‘They’ll believe what we tell them,’ she retorted.
‘Not a very diplomatic Warden, are you?’
Her mouth was open, ready to bite back, but Jak said in a hushed voice, ‘So, it’s true then? You are the new Earth Warden?’
There was no point denying it now. She ripped her glare from Kawai. ‘Yes,’ she muttered. ‘It’s true.’
‘By the Four,’ Jak gushed. ‘What sort of magic do you have? Can you show us?’
‘Let her breathe, Jak,’ said Boony with a shake of his head.
Kyra slowly sipped her ale, then leant toward Jak with absolute seriousness and said, ‘If I told you that, I’d have to kill you.’
Jak’s dark eyes widened with both fear and wonder. ‘Really?’
Kyra shrugged, but Kawai laughed. ‘Sarcasm, you idiot.’
‘Yeah, no… I knew that!’ Jak protested.
Boony clapped a patronising hand on his shoulder. ‘Sure you did, buddy.’
Kyra smirked as Jak took a long drink, presumably to hide his face. She felt Kawai watching her again. His gaze burned a hole in the side of her cheek.
He said calmly, ‘Have you seen the view of the stars from the bow, Kyra? Away from the lamp-light?’
She had. Multiple times. It was her favourite part of the ship at night. Isolated and dark, so dark you could see even the smallest of stars against the blackness like tiny, twinkling crystals. But she said innocently, ‘No, I haven’t. Am I missing out?’
He downed what was left of his ale and stood, holding out an inviting hand. ‘Allow me to show you.’
Perhaps this was it. The opportune moment she’d been waiting for.
Kyra rose and downed her own drink, slamming the empty tankard on the barrel a few seconds later, much to the surprise of Boony and Jak. She took Kawai’s hand, his skin callused and uneven against hers, and let him lead her away from the raiders.
She heard Boony say to Jak in a disparaging tone, ‘Sit down, you stinkin’ idiot. We weren’t invited.’
That smirk was no longer apparent on Kawai’s full mouth by the time they reached the bow, even in the dull light. Kyra tipped her head back and stared up at the sky, at the swirls and whirls of galaxies far away. She expected Kawai to do the same, but his attention was forward.
Not at her. Nor at the sky above.
Before she could say a word, he said, ‘I like you, Kyra. But if you don’t stop looking for my brother, we’re going to have a problem.’