The Queen of Mages (21 page)

Once, just once, she had killed a beetle
with it. They’d been out on a picnic, and the little black bug
crept across the blanket toward their plates of lamb. When no one
else was looking, she pushed her bead into the thing and lit it. It
popped and smoked and went still. Dardan looked around for the
source of the noise, but Amira distracted him with idle chatter and
brushed the dead beetle back into the grass.

It had troubled her a little, even though
squashing the insect would not have. But if it came down to a
fight… if Edon tried to kidnap her again…

She came back to herself as Edon and a pair
of knights mounted up and rode toward the castle. They came to a
stop quite close, within what would be an easy bowshot, had there
been any archers in the keep.

“Count Tarian,” Edon bellowed. “Why have you
shut yourself up in that old keep?”

Asmus shouted back, his voice booming even
louder than Edon’s. “When armed men approach in force, I take
precautions. Why have you ridden here?”

Amira thought she could see Edon’s face
turning red. She wondered how the burn she’d given him had healed,
and wished once again that she’d given him worse. “I am here for
Lady Amira Estaile. Send her out at once and I shall leave.”

“I’m afraid the lady is a guest of House
Tarian here in Hedenham County,” Asmus shouted back. “It would be
most rude of me to simply hand her over as if she were a sack of
grain, before she has taken her leave of us, of her own free will.”
These last words he pronounced slowly and clearly. Edon would not
miss his meaning.

“I am your king and I order to you produce
her at once!” Edon shouted.

“A proper king does not randomly kidnap his
subjects!”

Edon did not reply to this. Instead his gaze
lifted upward, until he was staring straight at Amira. She lurched
away from the arrow slit; had he seen her? Had he seen her silver
light?

She risked a glance again after a minute of
silence. Edon was speaking to the two knights by his side. One of
them turned and cantered back to the main body of soldiers.

“They’re going to attack,” Katin said, her
voice breaking. “Can’t you…” She leaned in close to Amira. “Can’t
you stop them?”

“I’d be as likely to hit our men as theirs
from this distance, even if they came over the walls. Besides, I
think Edon’s too far away.”

Despite their whispering, Calys overheard
and butted in. “What are you talking about?”

“Quiet,” Katin hissed at her, not even
bothering with a
m’lady
to soften it. Her knuckles were
white from gripping the edge of the parapet. Amira might be able to
protect herself if it came to fighting, but how could she protect
Katin, too? And Calys?

The twilit sky gave everything a purplish
cast. A few high, wispy clouds still glowed faintly orange. Torches
had been lit along the keep’s wall, and Amira could hear restless
muttering from below. They all sensed battle approaching. The back
of her neck prickled.

Several of Edon’s knights and attendants
rode forward to him, and came into a circle as he said something,
gesticulating. Then the other men all went back, save for the
original two knights who had accompanied Edon forward. He called
out again. “You brand yourself traitor, you who do not obey your
lawful king. So be it.” He placed his hands on his knees and leaned
forward.

Amira’s breath caught when she saw the
silver bead dart forth from Edon’s forehead. So he
had
learned to use the power. The bead floated steadily over the
ground, toward the gate of the keep. Was he going to set it on
fire? She needed a better view. She went around to an exposed part
of the parapet and leaned over it.

What could she do? Even if she shouted to
the men below, they wouldn’t understand. There was enough water in
the cistern to douse a few small fires, but if Edon had the same
power she did, he could ignite blazes on every part of the gate,
and kill anyone who came close enough to try to put them out.
He—

The bead stopped within the gate, and over
the course of a few seconds it began to grow brighter and brighter.
Amira had never seen her bead do this; even when she poured all the
power she could into it, it had never shone with such intensity.
“By the black spirits,” she breathed, squinting but unable to turn
away.

“What?” Katin said. She peered as if there
might be something she could see.

“It’s so—”

A terrific
crack
clouted her in the
face, and Amira fell back onto the hard stones of the keep’s roof.
Her head throbbed, and everything was blurry. Katin was on her back
as well; Calys had been farther from the parapet, but she had still
fallen onto her rear.

Amira blinked until her vision came back
into focus. She wobbled to her feet and looked down over the
battlements again. The gate was gone, reduced to splinters that
hung in its frame. One of the Tarian guards had been knocked off
the wall. He lay on the hard dirt, dying or maybe dead, impaled by
shards of wood a foot long. The other men all shouted and screamed,
and Count Asmus, who had been standing on the wall to the side of
the gate, clung to a crenel, dazed and flailing. She could not tell
which of the shapes below was Dardan.

A second bead of light sped forth from Edon.
This time it raced even faster than the first, to the tower at the
northwest corner of the wall. When the bead went inside the tower,
Amira could still see it just as clearly, as if the walls of the
tower were glass to it. The bead grew bright again. She grabbed
Katin, who had just managed to stand up, and pulled her away from
the wall. “Get down!”

Both women hit the stone just as a colossal
whump
shook the air, and when Amira stood and looked again
the tower had collapsed into rubble, still too high for a man to
climb easily, but useless for defense.

By Terror, how is he so strong? I can
barely start a fire, and he can annihilate an entire castle!
She shook with fright, her mind racing.
Chaos—Terror—Despair—help us—

Edon still sat ahorse, illuminated by the
torches his men carried. He had leaned back a bit and crossed his
arms, as if surveying the damage done. The Tarian and Hedenham men
down below ran about in a panic.

Calys had crawled over to the far edge of
the keep’s roof. Katin grabbed Amira’s arm and pulled her away from
the parapet. She couldn’t have seen the silver light, but she might
guess what had caused the explosions. “How is he doing that?” Katin
said in a fierce whisper.

“I don’t know! He’s… he’s different,
somehow.”

“We have to get out of here.” She turned and
began to pull Amira toward the trap door.

“I can’t leave them all to die,” Amira
protested.

Katin ignored her and dashed over to Calys.
“M’lady, you find somewhere to hide in this keep, and you do not
come out until everyone has gone. Then you make your way home when
it’s safe.”

“How—how will I know when it’s safe?” All of
Calys’s brio had gone out of her, and she looked a terrified child
under the light of the low moon.

“When you hear nothing,” Katin said, and
took Amira’s hand, dragging her toward the trap door again. When
they reached the little room where they’d slept the night before,
Katin stopped, looking around, keeping Amira behind her.
How
will she protect me from this?

She can’t, foolish girl. You know what to
do.

But there’s no escape.

Escape?

Amira felt as if something were crushing her
heart. Her breath came shallow, and she fell to one knee. She
couldn’t make a decision like this. She couldn’t…

“Amira! What’s wrong?” Katin grabbed her
arm, but Amira yanked it away and stood on her own.

“I’m… I’m all right.” Her breath steadied.
She thought about the men down below, hurt, injured, dying, dragged
into a battle, all because of her. She could not make them die for
her. She
would
not.

“Come on,” Amira said, making for the
stairs. Katin rushed along after her.

The horses that Dardan and Amira and the
valai
had brought were still hobbled behind the keep. Amira
ordered Katin to help her unloose them at once, and when that was
done, they led the beasts around to the gate.

There had been no other explosions. The gate
hung in tatters before them. The corner tower had collapsed even
further. Bleeding bodies were strewn around both.

She looked up to the wall. Someone had
helped Count Asmus to his feet. Dardan and Liam stood beside him,
swords drawn.

“You have tested my patience,” Edon was
shouting. “Send the girl out, and we will leave.”

Amira ran up the stairs beside the gate.
When she reached the top, puffing slightly, Asmus turned to look at
her. His face was pale, his sweat glistening in the firelight. He
was startled to see her, and all formality had been lost to him.
“What in the black spirits are you doing here? Where’s Calys?”

“Lady Calys is hiding in the keep,” Amira
said. “But Edon is here for me. You’ve seen what he can do. You
cannot fight him. All of us will die if I do not submit. I must
surrender myself to him.” Katin gasped.

Asmus bared his teeth. “No! I will not let
this… this little boy do this! He may be our king now, but he is no
good man!”

“What good will dying do you? Submit, and
live to see another day,” Amira pleaded with him.

“No. I will not turn you over.” Asmus looked
back out at Edon, who seemed to be waiting for a reply. Firelight
glinted off the spears and swords and helms of the men behind
him.

“Then help us escape.” Katin bulled forward,
grabbing Asmus by the tunic, heedless of his station. “If Amira is
gone, he will chase us, not bother with you.”

Old Ban chuffed. “They’d ride you down in
seconds.”

Amira stared at Katin. “But the keep—if I
flee, then Edon might take revenge—”

Katin whirled on her. “I will not be taken
prisoner to soothe your conscience!” Amira was startled by her
fierceness.

Asmus eyed the two women, considering. “I
cannot rightly countenance you going into his hands. We can make a
sally to cover your escape.”

Dardan gaped at him. He’d gotten a mail
shirt from somewhere, Amira noticed. “It would be a massacre! You
saw what he did to the walls. Imagine what that would do to a
man!”

“Not to mention that we have few weapons and
even less armor,” Liam added.

Amira could not think of what to say. If she
fled, Edon might punish the rest of the men. But he might punish
them anyway, even if she did surrender. The decision would not get
any easier with time.

“We will buy her time with our lives,” Asmus
declared. He locked eyes with Dardan, nodding slightly, then looked
over at the collapsed tower. “Horses could pick their way over
that, but they could easily slip and break a leg, which would check
the whole venture. But… if we rush out the gate and engage Edon’s
men, you two could sneak out and go along the moat. It’s steep to
escape, but the horses should be able to make it, if you go around
to the side of the keep. In the dark, they will not see you. You
can escape into the trees beyond. Do not tell us where you will go.
If we are taken, we cannot betray you if we do not know your
destination.”

Dardan pushed forward. “I will go as well. I
will not leave my lady to the wilderness in the night!”

Amira bristled a little. She wished again
she could have—would have—told him about her power. “I am not
helpless, Dardan,” she said. “Katin will be with me. We can
survive.” She realized with a start that she’d implicitly agreed to
Asmus’s plan.

Dardan’s mouth worked, and he looked to his
father for support, but Asmus had decided. “My lady, you need a
disguise.” He looked at his son. “Get two horses ready. Find a
guardsman her size, and have her don his armor. Her
vala
,
too. They will need every edge if they are to escape. And hurry!
Edon will not let us tarry long.” He faced out at the king, and
cupped his hands over his mouth. “How do we know you will let us
alone if we send her out?” he shouted. “You’ve already killed some
of my men with whatever black art you’ve used!”

Dardan punched his fist into his hand
angrily, then ran along the wall. He came back a moment later with
two of the shorter Tarian house guards. The men both wore wool
under leather and mail, with tabards that showed the Tarian house
colors. Dardan led them and Amira and Katin down the stairs and out
of Edon’s sight. “Out of your armor,” Dardan said to the men, and
it took a few moments for them to realize that he was serious.

Liam led two of the horses together to form
a crude screen. Amira and Katin quickly stripped down to their
underclothes. A few moments later, Dardan flopped the borrowed
men’s armor over the saddles. “Hurry,” he muttered. “Father’s not
getting anywhere with the king.”

Each man had provided a leather vest, a mail
shirt, leather leggings, and a tabard. Amira pulled on everything
except the tabard. Being marked with Tarian colors seemed unwise.
The leather fit reasonably well; the mail was heavy and cold, but
she judged it worth the discomfort, for a little extra protection.
Not that it would protect me against Edon.

Katin managed to dress even faster than
Amira did. Her borrowed clothes were a little bulkier than Amira’s,
but in the dark, it would be disguise enough. Both guards had
provided leather caps as well. Amira and Katin hurriedly pinned
each others’ hair up tight; long hair swinging down their backs
would be noticeable even at night.

“Good enough,” Dardan said when they
appeared from behind the horses. The two guardsmen now wore only
their wool; they looked like ordinary townsmen. “Get mounted.” He
gave Amira a sheathed dagger, which he jammed into a saddlebag
where she could reach it if necessary. Liam came over to Katin and
gave her his own dagger. She hesitated, then took it, murmuring
thanks to the
valo
. He said something to her which Amira
could not hear, but she thought she saw Katin stiffen and turn away
abruptly.