Chapter 14 #3
My hair whipped around my face as I loosed destruction onto the remaining two men, my grief for my grandmother transformed into a murderous rage. They were overtaken by flames, their skin mere kindling for this godless beast wrought of fire and ash.
Above us, the heavy cloud cover swirled as if the gods themselves were peeling them back to peer down at the chaos ripping through the village.
One of the last two bandits howled as he was dragged, backward into the burning crevasse.
He stuck his dagger in the ground in a desperate attempt to slow his descent, his bloodshot eyes wide with terror.
But it was no use. The flames wrapped around his neck like a noose and pulled him, head over heels, into the bowels of the earth.
Alone now, the beady-eyed man darted toward me, leaping over Silas as he cried prayers into the dirt.
The man bared his teeth, flinging his dagger into the air, aiming for me.
The flames snapped toward him as if I held a whip, a violent crack splitting the smoke-filled air.
The earth beneath him split, cobalt flames spitting into the air as he was swallowed like the others.
But the knife hit its mark.
I yelped, clutching the gash where his blade had grazed my ear.
Blood seeped between my fingers as I blinked wildly, fog clearing from my mind as if I had just woken up from a long nap.
Around me, the flames sputtered and died in the street, the earth groaning as it knitted itself back together until there was nothing left but a dark scar.
Motes of blue ash flitted through the smoke-filled air.
Enhart didn’t need to see what happened next.
The memory shuddered around us and dissipated, along with the faces of my friends and neighbors who had turned on me as if they hadn’t known me my entire life.
I wouldn’t let Enhart witness me falling to my knees at Gran’s side, not knowing that I wouldn’t even get the chance to bury her.
Or the aftermath of the Ealdorfyre, which burned through me like a fever for days.
It had never really left. A lump formed in my throat.
When my eyes fluttered open, the prince’s expression was calm, but he nearly crushed my fingers beneath his own.
“Ealdorfyre,” he whispered.
“What?” I asked, whimpering as his hold on me tightened.
“Ealdorfyre.” He finally relaxed his grip, letting my hands slip out of his. I flexed my fingers as the blood came rushing back. “The blue flame,” he continued. “It’s an ancient magic. Incredibly difficult to bring forth even among masters of the craft.”
“It’s not exactly something I’m proud of,” I said.
“You should be,” he said. “It takes an enormous amount of power to summon.”
“Did you not see what I did to them?” I asked, bewildered.
“I saw,” he replied. “Now tell me. Have you summoned it since? The Ealdorfyre?”
“No,” I said flatly. “And I never will again.”
He ran his fingers through his hair. “I should write to Ivor. It could be your gift.”
“My what?”
“It’s like a special talent.”
“Then I’d like a different talent.”
“That’s not how it works.”
I wrapped my arms tightly across my chest. “Do you really have nothing more to say after what I showed you?”
He shot me a wry look. “I’m not trying to deny you your tortured past, but you have to understand how remarkable this is.”
“It doesn’t feel remarkable,” I shot back. “It feels alive. Like a parasite I can’t shake.”
A beat passed between us. His gaze was searching.
“Listen,” he said, his tone soft. “I’ve done some things that haunt me, too, but you’re not a villain. In fact, it looks to me like you saved the people of your village.”
I laughed dryly. “Well, they didn’t exactly thank me for it.”
“They forced you out?”
I shook my head. “They tried to burn me on a pyre, actually. I used my magic to create a diversion and escape.”
“Then they left you no choice.”
Tears stung my eyes. “I left my gran behind.”
He hesitated. “When she fell—”
“It was instant,” I finished for him.
“It’s not your fault, you know,” he said. “Prejudices of old run deep, especially in the Outlands.”
I swallowed, uncomfortable in the brief silence that passed between us. “I think I’d prefer it if you weren’t this nice to me.”
“Well in that case, I suppose I should tell you to stop whining about it. Grow up. You’ve got a king to advise for fuck’s sake. Et cetera.”
“Much better.”
He exhaled slowly. “I can’t promise that this is the last we’ll ever speak about this. Mordric will want to know, and I’m duty-bound to tell him.”
I took a shaky breath. “I understand.”
“Also, I will have you know that the Ealdorfyre and actual fire are entirely different things. From what I’ve read, it’s more like a living creature. I’m sure that you can feel the difference.”
The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. I knew what he meant, although I didn’t care to admit it. “Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
“No, it’s a statement of fact, and it means that you are no longer permitted to use this as an excuse not to work with fire. Are we agreed?”
I rolled my eyes. “Fine,” I muttered, unwilling to admit that he was right. “We are agreed.”