Incandescence - 23. Forward

*Talon*

Once my feet landed in sand, it took me a moment to realize Hanja had come with me. The healer staggered and dry heaved, hands on his knees. You’d think he would’ve been used to it by now. I left him taking deep breaths as I looked around the beach. A dark shape caught my attention and I knew in a moment that it was Meryck. Immediately, I began moving in that direction. I heard steps following and part of me was glad that Hanja was here. The other part of me cared about nothing except figuring out what had happened.

Meryck was standing. At his feet, two people were lying in the sand. My pace quickened. My heart seized and it felt like my stomach filled with ice. The closer I got, the more I wondered if my entire world was laying prone in the dirty sand. I remembered when Anders had taken Kalian. I’d nearly lost my mind. In all fairness, I probably had lost it. We did not need a repeat performance.

Staggering forward, I almost collapsed when I saw it wasn’t my husband. I felt relief for only a few seconds as I saw that idiot goblin man. He wasn’t moving. He was too pale and his clothing was bloodied. What had he done? Why did goblin man always strive to ruin my day? Ignoring the jolt of grief that rattled my very bones, I continued.

“Meryck!” I barked and the covered face turned to me, “Breathing?”

The boy shook his head and Hanja shoved past me, “How long?”

“Maybe twenty minutes.” He replied just loud enough to be heard.

Hanja kneeled beside him, rapidly mumbling as he closed his eyes. Red light colored Hanja’s hands and I watched for a moment. Suman was a few feet away. He was still, eyes empty as he stared up at the sky. His hands were under him and his feet were bound. Confused, I quickly decided that Suman wasn’t going to be of any help.

“What happened?”

“Trap. We knew it was. Illithian princes were here. Two. Rydian and Lucian. Lucian is dead over there. Kalian’s father is over there too. I don’t know if he’s alive. There was fighting. Rydian got away. Then Kalian disappeared.” I followed his slightly stilted speech and made a note to apologize for forcing him to talk so much. That’d have to be much later. There were far more important things I had to deal with now. I nodded and heard Meryck let out a relieved sigh. I was pretty sure that if Meryck never had to speak, he would be all too happy.

“Hanja?”

“I’m not a miracle worker. I can’t raise the dead.” I winced. Suman didn’t react. His blank expression was still on the sky above him.

Sighing, I turned to where Meryck had pointed out Kalian’s father. I really hated that guy. Trudging over to him, his head turned slowly in my direction. He’d been worked over. That much was clearly apparent by his sorry state. A part of me knew I should feel something for him, but it didn’t happen. The man before me had been a constant source of pain and stress for my husband. Even before I’d met him. Crouching by him, my eyes flicked over every wound.

“I can’t say I’m happy to see you. I suppose it’s better that you’re alive. Kalian would be upset if you weren’t.” I drawled as one of his eyes met my gaze. The other was swollen closed and a disgusting dark purple.

“You are wasting time. They have Kalian.” He said.

I rolled my head on my shoulders as I slowly counted to ten, “After all these years you still fail to realize that not everyone is Kalian. He let you keep your home out of the kindness of his heart. He let you operate as if you still have a shred of respect and dignity. Watch your tone. You mean nothing to me and what little worth you had is gone. If you hadn’t noticed, you fucked up the one thing we trusted you with.”

“After all these years, you’re still a disrespectful abom-“

“Mm, we’re not doing that today. I have no time.” He let out a hiss followed by a pained gasp as I stuck my thumb unceremoniously into a wound on his shoulder, “What do you know about them?”

“What do you mean? Whatever you know.” He choked out.

“I’m quickly losing patience.” I said as I twisted my finger, “One of the princes, Rydian, knew Kalian was on the way. The Council members have been slaughtered by said prince. Did you try to cut a deal too and Illiath decided to double cross you?”

“That’s ridiculous.” He gasped and I jerked back as a weak burst of flame rose toward my face.

Gritting my teeth, I flicked my wrist and trapped his arms behind him with my Magik, “Listen. Kalian isn’t here. Nor is Eon. If you want to continue sullying the air around us by breathing, you’re going to tell me whatever you know. Even if it’s limited.”

“The Council has been in league with Illiath and Serran for almost as long as you’ve all been in charge. We all harbor resentment for the way you took from us.”

I sneered down at him, “Hm, ‘we’. Did you tell them anything?”

He looked up at me, his eye meeting mine unflinchingly, “No. They’re the ones who told me Kalian was coming. I don’t know why you let him.”

“You asked for help. He answered the call.”

“I never asked for help. I wouldn’t ask my estranged son for anything.”

I tapped the tip of his mangled nose, “You can ask him to leave you in power when this is all over. We’ll see how that goes after your gross incompetence. Where is your wife? Your daughter?”

“They have Anika. I don’t know where my wife is. They separated us when they set fire to the estate and dragged me away.”

“So, would she still be there?” I asked.

“I don’t know.”

“You’re useless.” I growled and shoved myself to my feet. Thinking, I wiped my thumb off on my tunic. At least the bit about Anika being captured was true. My attention was drawn to the smoke stretching above our heads. If the estate was still burning, how long had it been doing so? Flames like that surely meant that no one inside could be alive. Right?

“Shouldn’t you be saving my son?”

“Oh! He’s your son now, is he?” I whipped around before lowering myself a bit to meet his eyes, “Kalian can take care of himself. Even if they teleported him to them. He can jump on his own. There are other things to be addressed here before I lose my damn mind and try to set fire to the ocean.”

“Their boats aren’t moving.” Hanja said quietly. His gloves were back in place and his face was grim, “They’re still very close. They’re not threatened at all.”

I looked down at Loren and felt something inside me throb a bit. Loren and I didn’t get along. Our personalities had clashed from the very moment we meant. Mind you, he’d been trying to explode my brain, but that was beside the point. As Lyrah and I had awkwardly bonded, she’d tell me things. He didn’t have to take her along when he escaped. He didn’t have to tether himself to a lost, blind, young girl. Loren had chosen to. He’d taken care of her like an older brother would when I hadn’t even known that she was still alive. Deep, deep within a small box inside my heart, I could admit that I appreciated and respected him.

He'd never been so still. I hated it. Hanja had crossed the man’s arms over his chest and cleaned a little of the blood off his face. Suman rolled and crawled forward on his knees, remaining silent, his hands still bound behind him. He leaned forward with impressive core control to gently touch his forehead to Loren’s. I looked away at that point. Suman and Loren weren’t the first people that came to mind when I thought of affectionate partners. I honestly thought the relationship had been about sex and mutual trauma. I had obviously been wrong. Or I was far more right than I ever realized.

“What will you do?” Kalian’s father asked.

“Well, to start-“

“Get me there.”

I slowly turned to Suman. He was on his vertical again, staring across the water to the boats. He looked from them to me and his eyes narrowed as I stayed quiet, “Talon.”

“I don’t think that’s the best idea right now.” I sighed.

“I didn’t ask what you thought.” Suman awkwardly pushed himself to his feet and Meryck moved behind him, cutting his bindings before stepping away again. My cousin rubbed his wrists and kept his eyes on mine, “I didn’t ask because I didn’t care. That prince is on that boat and he forfeited his right to continue drawing breath. Karma is slow, so I’m going to hurry it along.”

“Are we going to pretend like you’re not looking for a suicide mission?”

A smile slowly stretched across Suman’s lips, “There have been one too many princes of Dleth for roughly thirty years.”

+Kalian+

Rydian seemed surprised when I simply sighed and leveled him with a glare after I’d calmed down. I had to get back to Loren. I had no idea who pulled me here or what the prince had planned. It didn’t matter. Loren didn’t have the time which meant that I didn’t. This idiot prince didn’t know what he was getting himself into. I could panic when my friend opened his eyes and drew breath again.

“I don’t have time for a deranged little prince with a power complex. I was right in the middle of something. As you know. I’m not sure who dragged me here, but they’re never going to do it again.”

The man laughed, spinning around as he looked at a few of the crew members standing around us. His expression was incredulous, “You seem confused. You’re not going to make it off this ship.”

“I’m going to be leaving it. You will go down with it, however. What’s left of you.” I glanced around again, “All of you.”

Rydian frowned for a moment and crouched in front of me, “You’re cocky.”

“Perhaps, but you’re stupid.” He jerked back as I rose. His eyes were suspicious and darted around as if he wasn’t sure what to make of me and my arrogance. I rolled my shoulders, “If you tell me where my sister is, you can leave right now on this ship and return home. If not. I will go one by one until I find her.”

“You think I’m the type to turn my entire navy around like a dog with my tail between my legs?” He stared at me, a scowl on his face.

“You misunderstand. I said ship. Singular. Not plural. You will return home with this one alone. If any. I’m not giving you back your entire naval force after you took one of our cities.” I smiled and he pulled a knife from his hip. He stared me down and I could feel the nerves of his crew grow shakier. They exchanged glances and looked between Rydian and me.

Twirling his knife, he grinned, “We’re suppressing your power.”

“Not all of it,” I said. I could feel the Magik inside. It was muted, but I knew it didn’t matter. I didn’t need all of it to deal with Rydian and his ships. I tilted my head, “So, one more time. One ship or no ships? It’s an easy decision. Do you survive today?”

He lunged and I managed to dodge the blade, catching his elbow and directing his whole body away from me with momentum. Rydian spun around and tried to counter. His hand was closed into a fist and he was so fast I could do little more than block. He didn’t have me on the defensive long, though. I flicked my wrist and he gasped as blood sprayed from the back of his knee. He wobbled a bit but remained on his feet, jaw clenched as he stared me down. How much he resembled Loren surprised me. They were only half brothers, but Rydian looked like a twin. His features were a touch more angular and his facial expressions were what set him apart. Sighing, I squared my shoulders as he visibly gathered his bearings and produced another blade. Now dual-wielding, I could tell he was struggling to keep the pain out of his expression and his steps controlled.

There was no telling how deep the wound behind his knee was. Underestimating the prince wouldn’t be wise. I had spent years marveling at Loren’s combat prowess. There was no telling what Loren could have done with more than his few years of training. They were a warrior family and Loren was separated from it very early. This boy had made it to adulthood. He’d taken Loren down. I shook my head and made myself calm my breathing. Going blind with rage isn’t how I wanted to handle this.

Rydian’s eyes swept over my body, his eyes narrowing as he studied me. He was reevaluating. He’d underestimated me like countless others before. He spun his knife and fell into a loose stance. This was also like his brother’s, but he lacked the elegance my friend poured into his movements. Rydian’s chest rose and then fell and before his next breath, he was across the deck of the ship and his blades connected with the Magik wrapped around my hands. He was impossibly fast. Easily the fastest person I’d ever fought. Gritting my teeth, I fended off his attacks and glanced back to the shore. Loren needed me. I had no idea if Talon could do anything to help. I needed to finish this and get back to the beach.

I’m not sure what he expected. Rydian stared at me, a twisted grin plastered on his face. As I stared back, it started to fade. As someone who seemed to crave instilling fear in others, the lack of mine must be disturbing for him. A glance over each shoulder confirmed that I was surrounded by more of his men now. There were too many for me to fight alone without my full Magik. Rolling my head on my shoulders, I returned my attention to the crazed prince in front of me. I could sense Talon nearby. His rage was ebbing and flowing over the bond. I hadn’t meant to call out, but I was glad I had. Having Talon was always an advantage.

Hopefully, Talon could get Loren a healer while I dealt with these stupid interlopers. I was tired of feeling like we were always one step behind. Suman kept us in the dark. Wren did as well. Then there was the issue of the Council and how much of our information they’d freely given. Learning that Rydian had massacred them was convenient. It took care of one of our larger information leaks. At the end of this-after everything we’d learned-it was clear that we shouldn’t have given them a chance. As soon as we snatched power, theirs should’ve been taken as well. Talon had been right all this time. I was too sympathetic, too trusting. I’d opened myself up one too many times and I was angry that people continued to let me down.

“What was your plan once you got me here?” I scowled.

“You don’t have your Magik. My man over there has nullified it.” Rydian shook his head, face clouded with disbelief. I followed where his eyes looked. An unassuming man seemed to shrink under my gaze as I stared him down.

“I don’t know why you seem so confident. You’re wildly outmatched. Magik or not.” The prince shrugged, a knife flipping into his hand.

“I was thinking the same thing to be honest.”

He glared at me and stepped closer. His hand shot out and I managed to jerk back in time to avoid the blade aimed for my face. Rydian tilted his head then paused, accessing again. The prince-to his credit-did seem intelligent. Crazy as all get out, but he wasn’t a fool. Not like Mallex or some of the other people I’d come across who were quick to write me off.

Stepping back, his head tilted the other way and his fingers slid over his jaw as he looked from me to the beach. His expression darkened and I couldn’t fight off the urge to look as well. I couldn’t truly make anyone out on the beach, but I didn’t need specifics. A tall figure was striding across the sand. They wore all black and I blew out a puff of air, forcing a lock of hair off my forehead. Gee, who could the surge of power and figure dressed entirely in black be?

Incoming.

I blinked as I watched black shadows swirl around by the ship’s helm. There weren’t as many people there and the man at the wheel was fixated on Rydian and me. To my surprise, when the shadows abated Suman-not Talon-stood next to the man. The poor sailor didn’t have time to get out a shout before spikes hit him in the head and neck from the side. Suman’s shoulders heaved and his eyes locked on Rydian. I’m not sure the Dlethian prince even registered my existence or anyone else’s. It didn’t matter. Suman waved his hand and I resisted the urge to watch him. He made zero noise. There was a force around him and anyone it swallowed up became soundless much like the prince. How surprising, he’d been hiding something yet again.

Single-minded, he made his way toward Rydian. There was no rush in his step. He broke eye contact with the other man’s back only to dispatch another obstacle in his way. Another poor sailor who no doubt hadn’t realized what he’d signed up for. I had hoped Suman would somehow remain unnoticed due to the lack of sound, but there were people directly across from him who raised the alarm. It had been inevitable. Smirking ruefully, I watched as Rydian turned. His shoulders tensed and Suman stopped.

“I’m going to peel your skin off piece by piece and make you eat every single bit. Then, I’m going to have someone heal you enough to keep you alive so I can bring you along while I destroy every little thing you’ve ever held dear.”

“Oh, really? You think so?” Blades dropped into Rydian’s hands but his opponent didn’t even react, “You’re still outnumbered and your big player has limited power.”

“I don’t care about anyone on this boat but you.” Suman’s head fell to the side, the curtain of his hair partially hiding a truly horrific smile, “You are mistaken if you think I believe either of us will leave this boat.”

Shifting, I took stock of everyone behind me. This was still a sticky situation and I wasn’t sure why Talon hadn’t come himself. Either way, I didn’t know if Anika was alive. If she was, I needed to find her. At the same time, one person’s life wasn’t worth weathering the destruction this navy could still cause. They’d already destroyed Krinn. I refused to let them do more.

I don’t know if Anika is alive. I don’t know if she’s here.

Least of our worries. Collateral damage is unavoidable during war.

Loren?

Hanja’s trying. You have more important things to think about.

My focus was forced back when men charged Suman. I didn’t know their caliber, but gods I hope they knew what they were up against. Rydian turned back to me, eyes a touch crazed. Loren’s brother stalked forward. I wasn’t weak and over the years my hand-to-hand combat had improved immensely. That didn’t mean I wanted to fight a mini Loren head on.

“It’s really too bad you’re not on our side. Loren too. We could all do amazing things.” He sighed and pulled a longer knife off his back.

“I’d watch yourself. If you think he can’t get to you through your men, you’re going to be very surprised.” I said. Truthfully, all I could hear was the sounds of fighting. Rydian was blocking most of my view. The look in Suman’s eyes wouldn’t let me think he was losing, however. He was on a mission and out for blood. I wasn’t sure that he’d even stop if I stumbled into his path of destruction.

Rydian’s blade swiped through the space where my head would’ve been had I not ducked at the last minute. I surrounded my hands with Magik again and dodged his follow up from his other hand. His movements didn’t slow. They almost blurred in fact. Loren had never claimed or demonstrated any power, but I was starting to think that perhaps their gifts manifested in different ways. I’d never seen people fight the way they did. I wasn’t sure that I was a match for Rydian, even with my Magik.

Which would have been bad enough, but Rydian wasn’t the only one I had to fight off. The ship’s men were coming at me too and I was struggling to pick out the idiot that was binding my power. I was already panting as I narrowly avoided another blade aimed for my head.

Energy flagging, it became apparent that even though I had trained as much as I could, I was still unprepared. Rydian didn’t seem to tire and I knew he would outlast me. I was panting hard and jerked back, cringing as I felt a sharp pain in my cheek. He just kept coming and I found myself strictly on the defensive. Part of me had hoped I could drag this out long enough to find Anika. Glancing to where Suman had been, confusion filled me when I didn’t see him. I nearly stumbled and lost my footing as he slid between Rydian and I. They paused and the break gave me time.

My head whipped around and I found the man who’d bound my Magik cowering in a corner. Stalking toward him, I didn’t have time for nice words or apologies. A flare of something ugly twisted inside me as I drew closer. He might’ve made a sound, but I gripped his collar and ignored it. Then my hand moved up to his jaw and the other found the back of his head. One quick jerk, a disgusting snap, and I felt my power surge. Spreading my fingers, my light spread quickly over the deck, disintegrating every unfriendly person I saw. Like the prettiest, golden wave of death. Suman and Rydian were still going back and forth. I couldn’t bring myself to take this from the Dlethian. I’d taken his grandfather’s life and I’d never stopped to think how that might affect him. At the same time, if someone had taken Talon from me, I’d want to wrench their soul from their body myself. Judging how Suman had reacted to Loren’s fall, he needed this.

So I let them fight and turned to head below deck to search the ship. This was the only solution I could think of. I’d clear a ship and as I went, I’d search for Anika. I paused when the deck under my feet jerked. I glanced around and black shadows curled around and above us. Another quick look and every ship I could see looked the same. We were moving. The whole navy was being pulled back to shore and the closer I got, the more at ease I felt. Talon was shin deep in the ocean and he looked so terribly inconvenienced that I bit back a smile as I tromped down the stairs to look for the remaining scraps of my family.

I chose to focus on my husband instead of the form I’d noticed still lying in the sand. Hanja stood behind Talon and the set of his shoulders didn’t improve my mood. Pain lanced through my heart and I forced it to the back, locking it away for later. I needed to be strong right now.
We all did.

Sorry for missing last week. Doing my best I promise. 
Wedding planning is a lot.