The Lady of Toryn Anthology (Lady of Toryn trilogy) (31 page)

"Seriously,"
Ashlyn said, rolling her eyes. "Dumb it down for us mere mortals,
please."

"I
ran a few tests-" Sara began flipping through the folder, running her
finger down lists of what Ashlyn assumed were test results- "and they came
back negative for all known illegal substances. As far as I can tell, Soryl was
clean."

"Hmm."
Ashlyn picked up a photo, eyes tracing the winding lines on Soryl's charred
skin. "I don't get it."

"Neither
did I- until I tried to identify his blood type." Sara slapped a paper
down in front of her and pointed to a smudged column of numbers. "See
that?"

"Um...no."
Math...or any kind of academics, really...were not Ashlyn's strong suit.

"Soryl's
blood type is O. But he had something else- somebody
else's blood-
in
his veins when he died. Somebody whose blood type was A."

"Ooh.
Oh...oh, ew! How the hell did that happen?"

"He's
been injecting with someone else's blood," Sara explained patiently.
"From the looks of those track marks, he's been doing it for some time.
And that's not the most interesting part."

"There’s
something grosser?" Ashlyn said, sinking into a stool in front of the
counter.

"This
is even better." Sara slapped another paper down next to the first one.
"I ran the alien blood against every sample we've got in the lab- pretty
much everyone who's ever been treated in Toryn, to include you and your
friends. This," she said, indicating one column of numbers, "is the
blood that Soryl was injecting with. And this-" she moved her finger to
the other page- "is your blood."

Ashlyn
stared hard, trying to find a pattern. "Okay, they're similar, there's a
lot of the same numbers. Wouldn't that make sense, since technically only the
Li bloodline is able to use..." She trailed off, not sure if she should
say anything in front of the scientist about the
shift
stanes.

"They
are the same, Ash- or at least similar enough that I can tell your blood is
related to this sample." Sara nudged a third paper over the top of the
second sheet. "This is your father's blood sample."

Ashlyn
scanned the numbers, eyes widening. "They're the same," she
whispered. "Soryl was injecting my
father's
blood?"

Sara
nodded. "I can't imagine why- it's so extremely dangerous to inject a
foreign blood type into your body. Potentially lethal."

Oh
Drago- suddenly it was all making sense.

Kou's
words came rushing back to her, clear and concise as if he were speaking them
directly to her right this moment.

Shift
has made itself indigenous to Toryn...to the Li bloodline...

It
has changed itself so that only a Toryn whose veins flow with the blood of the
Li clan is able to wield it...

Her
heart was pounding.

"Sara,"
Ashlyn said quietly, staring down at the photographs in front of her.
"Would these...track marks show up on anyone who was injecting with my
father's blood?"

"Presumably
so, if they’ve been doing it long enough."

Ashlyn
slammed her fist down on the table, the metal clanging beneath her hand, and
Sara jumped. Ashlyn reached across and grabbed the other girl's hand, staring
intensely through the thick lenses of her glasses. "Listen to me, Sara.
Don't tell anyone you know this. Not anyone. This stays secret. Got it?"

The
scientist nodded in confusion. "Certainly."

Ashlyn
closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I'll be back. Don't do anything
else- anything- until you hear from me." Turning on her heel, she marched
to the door, flinging it open just as a brilliant bolt of lightning split the
sky in front of her.

"Aik,"
she said to the wolf, who was still curled around himself and grumbling at the
rain. "You need to stay here and make sure no one gets in. Seriously, no
one, not even the Toryn elders."

"Of
course, Ash." The furry beast stood and shook like a dog, droplets of rain
spraying in every direction. "I will await further orders from you."

Ashlyn
stepped out into the rain and looked up at the gray sky...swallowed hard. This
wasn't going to go over well at all. She began walking, and Skye fell into step
beside her.

"What'd
she say?" he asked curiously.

One
step. Two steps. Her feet were like anchors in the ocean, sucked downwards by
the inevitable pull of gravity, almost too heavy to lift.

She
glanced over at Skye, trying to think of some way to form words out of the
jumble of information swirling in her mind. Oh, the thoughts in her head were
horrible, too outrageous to even consider, but what if she was right? What if
she was right, oh
gods,
what if everything she'd been led to believe was
nothing but an intricately fabricated
lie?

Before
she knew it, she was running, her sneakers pounding on the wet grass as she
sprinted towards the bridge that led to Heaven. The wooden slats echoed and
groaned beneath her feet, and she hit the double doors running, the dual hinges
allowing them to swing inward and the distinctive stench of sake filling her
nostrils as she charged into the room. Momentarily blinded, she paused to let
her eyes adjust to the darkness, breathing so hard it felt like her lungs were
cracking.

Her
gaze focused on Kou, sitting at the end of the bar closest to the wall,
listening to Tag talking animatedly with Ellis. Restlyn was rummaging around
behind the bar- where else?- with her newly dark hair pulled into a tight bun.

"Floor!"
Nozomi- who had been bartending in Heaven for longer than Ashlyn could
remember- shuffled out from behind the counter. "Floor wet!" he
yelled at Ashlyn in very stilted Merchant Tongue. "You disrespect!"

Ashlyn
brushed past him, focusing only on Kou as she stomped towards him, water
droplets flinging with every step. "Grab him," she snapped at Ellis,
pointing towards Tag.

One of
the things she'd always liked about Ellis, despite his Spartan beginnings, was
how he didn't question things at the wrong moment. In a split second he was on
his feet and shoving Tag face-down onto the bar, firmly locking the Toryn man's
arms behind his back in one swift motion

Ashlyn
swept the barstool out from beneath Kou, planting one hand on his neck and
slamming him back against the wall. The impact shuddered up her arm, but Ashlyn
was too furious to acknowledge the pain.

"What
the-" Kou choked as her grip tightened, and his hands came up to scrabble
uselessly at her wrist. "What are you doing?" he gasped, eyes
watering.

"I'm
going to look up your sleeve,
Devlyn,"
she spat out. "And if I
don't like what I find, you had better pray to Drago for mercy."

"What…the
hell…are you talking about?" he sputtered, still trying to pry her hand
from his throat.

"Ash,"
Skye said uneasily, appearing at her side. "Calm down. Tell me what's
going on."

"I'll
calm down after I have a look at Kou's arms," Ashlyn said.

As she
stared at him, Kou's eyes locked with hers- and narrowed. Suddenly he spun,
rolling against the wall and twisting her arm along with him. Caught off-guard,
Ashlyn was pulled into the turn and slammed against the wall, knocking the
breath out of her and wrenching her shoulder nearly out of its socket. She held
on for dear life, and Kou's shirt tore in her hands, ripping open at the chest.

Before
she could even catch her breath, Kou shrugged out of the shirt, vaulted onto
the bar and was halfway across the room, headed for the door.

Tag
took the distraction as opportunity to slither downwards, somehow managing to
pry one arm free of Ellis's grip. His elbow shot back, connecting solidly with
Ellis's nose as the older man tried to grab him again. There was an audible
crunch,
and Ellis recoiled, one hand flying to his face.

"Don't
let Tag escape," Ashlyn gasped to Skye, brushing past him in a crooked
dash for the exit. She couldn't stop to help- Kou was already out the door and
running.

Ashlyn
hit the door and sprinted after him, the rain tearing the breath from her lungs
and somehow invigorating her at the same time. Kou clattered across the bridge
and turned left, heading up towards the mountains. Towards Na Michico.

"Ashlyn,
wait!" she heard Restlyn call from behind her, but Ashlyn didn't look to
see if the martial artist was following.

It was
too late already, she could see. He had too much of a head start and she was
already tired from her run earlier. But she couldn't just let him get away- she
had to try. Ashlyn willed herself to run faster. Her muscles were screaming at
her for relief, her legs heavy and clumsy as tree stumps, but she pushed
harder, slipping and sliding in the rain-soaked grass and mud as she trailed
further and further behind. Past the temple they went, and up the gravel-strewn
path, the same path she'd been running every morning.

In a
flash, she realized that she had one chance to catch up with Kou- and no time
to debate about whether or not she’d be risking her life. Ashlyn sped up, cresting
a small hill and coming into view of the boulders she'd observed earlier. If
she could make that jump, clear the dry waterfall, she'd be ahead of Kou. But
if she missed…

Ashlyn
skidded to a stop, hesitating for the briefest fraction of an instant before
leaping on top of the nearest boulder and using her momentum to propel herself
onto the rock closest to the edge.

Her
feet slipped on the wet rock, but she managed to catch her balance easily
enough. She pushed her wet hair back from her face, gauging the distance of the
jump. There wasn't enough room for a running start, but as she looked down to
the drop, which was at least a hundred feet if not more, she thought the gap
between the boulders and the second half of the path, just across the waterfall,
would be an easy jump. In theory.

Crouching
slightly, Ashlyn angled towards the corner of the path that was nearest, and
launched herself across the gap, arms and legs flailing. Her feet hit the
ground first, slipping on the wet moss and loose gravel, and then she tumbled
forward, somersaulting ungracefully across the path before smacking into the
cliff face.

It
wasn't a great landing.

But she
made it.

Ashlyn
caught her breath, scrunched up against the rock. Nothing seemed broken, but
she was hurting all over- probably from old wounds as much as any new ones
she'd inflicted just now. Collecting her feet underneath her, she stood
unsteadily, blinking the world into focus just as Kou rounded the path in front
of her.

Without
thinking, Ashlyn threw her arm out. She was too short for a truly effective
clothesline, but Kou's collarbone connected solidly with her forearm and he hit
the dirt much easier than she'd expected. For one breathless moment, she was
staring down at him, and her eyes went to his naked arms, noting the snakelike
patterns of black that traced along his veins.

Before
she'd had a chance to process what to do next, Kou flipped up in a scissor
kick, bringing himself into a crouch before sweeping her legs out from
underneath her. Ashlyn fell backwards, against the cliff, narrowly managing to
keep her head from cracking against the rock face. She immediately pushed off,
aiming a kick at Kou's outstretched hand. The blow landed true and his entire
hand snapped back, joints popping audibly.

Kou jumped
to his feet, sidestepping to place Ashlyn between himself and the side of the
mountain, and made a dash for the top of Na Michico.

Ashlyn
made a grab for him, but missed, and pounded after him. At this point she was
so frantic to stop him from getting away that all thoughts of exhaustion had
fled her mind. Kou barely managed to reach the end of the path at the top of
the mountain before Ashlyn tackled him from behind, and they went rolling in a
tangle of limbs.

Kou
managed to roll on top of her, blocking a punch with one hand and landing a
solid hit to her chin. Ashlyn threw as much of her weight to the side as she
could, barely managing to get a leg off the ground, but it was enough. She
brought her leg up and hooked it over Kou's shoulder, using her lower body to
shove him backwards.

He fell
back and they both scrambled to their feet, panting heavily. Ashlyn slipped,
realizing for the first time how close they were to the cliff, and took a step
sideways, away from the slick, gravel-strewn edge of Na Michico.

It was
Kou who punched first. Ashlyn blocked, shoving his fist aside on a rush of pure
adrenaline, then brought her elbow up to catch him across the chin. He
backpedaled just before the hit, throwing them both off balance, but Ashlyn
fell into the motion and spun in a low kick, one hand against the ground to
keep herself from falling. Kou dodged again, and caught her leg in the crook of
his right arm. Ashlyn flipped, letting her knee bend as she turned, and spun in
a mid-air kick. This time her foot connected with her target, and Kou went
down.

He
released her foot, but somehow found the strength to actually shove her away in
mid-air, sending Ashlyn spinning. She landed awkwardly in a heap. Her forearms
and elbows hit the ground hard, but there was no ground to catch her feet, and
suddenly gravity was dragging her backwards as her legs continued their
descent.