33. Tahlia

Chapter 33

Tahlia

R agewing shot toward the very moon itself and Tahlia nearly swallowed her brains. The queen's black dragon did likewise—the flying part, not the brain eating—assumably because remaining close kept them all invisible and they needed to get out of range of the ballistae. The cool night air bit at Tahlia's cheeks and she grinned widely, restraining herself from whooping with joy.

The dragons leveled out until the city was a fogged gathering of stone that appeared to be the size of a fisted hand. They flew quickly past the walls and over the nearby forest.

"We are visible now!" Queen Revna shouted over the wind, her words barely audible.

Tahlia knew how that felt. Their voices weren't powerful like Marius's and the other Mist Knights.

"To the Witch's abode, my lady queen?" Marius asked, using said Mistgold blood power.

She nodded, and the dragons flew onward into the night. Tahlia couldn't decide what was more exciting: Marius's divine body against hers—she shivered with delight as he gripped her thigh with one of his perfectly large hands; the success of their mission—if one didn't fret overmuch about the murdering; or the fact that the Witch was now responsible for healing Lija and soon she'd be in the skies with Tahlia, flying high and heading for battles with pirates.

"How much trouble will I be in for killing Durniad?"

"No more than Ragewing and I will be for exposing our identities."

"I hope we get to share a dungeon cell at least." Tahlia slid a hand over Marius's leg and stroked the inner side of his powerful thigh. Oooh, she loved those thighs.

Marius growled low in his throat, the sound he made when pleased but also not able to approve. It was one of her favorite sounds.

At the Witch's house, Ragewing and Arkyn landed. The queen remained on her dragon's back, but Marius dismounted and bowed. Tahlia followed, taking Marius's hand. An owl hooted from the peaked roof of the Witch's abode, and a chill ran over Tahlia's back. She ripped off the remainder of the dress's skirts, glad that she'd slipped some loose sleeping trousers underneath before she'd been "married" to Durniad.

Queen Revna cleared her throat and looked around, as if she was expecting someone. "Well, this is where I leave you. I was never here. You never saw me," the queen said quietly, and then she and her forest dragon flew away.

The branches of the oaks overhanging the Witch's house waved in the wind of Arkyn's wings. Marius looked at Tahlia; he was chewing the inside of his cheek as if deep in thought.

"What was that all about?" Tahlia whispered.

Marius grumbled. "She was helping us in an unofficial capacity, so we must pretend that she never did. We'll give the crown to the king. He doesn't need to know details."

He unbuckled his belt and handed her the crown. It was invisible in spots; the Witch's concoction was wearing off.

"But we will have to tell him that we killed Durniad, right?" She turned the crown over in her hands, studying its shine and weight. "And that the humans saw Ragewing."

"I suppose so," Marius said. "We wouldn't want to hold anything back that would come out later. They need to know a portion of the challenges we encountered and the changes in plan we were forced to enact."

As they approached the Witch's door, the heavy piece of oak and metal swung open on its own. Tahlia leaned around Marius to look at the strange blue lighting of the house as she trailed him inside. The Witch and King Lysanael stood at a cauldron in the center of the room. Sparks flicked from the black pot like little stars. Scary little stars.

Tahlia bowed and Marius joined her in the movement. The whole place smelled like danger, and it did absolutely nothing to soothe Tahlia's nerves.

Though this mission was over, it felt like a new one had already begun.

What would the king do when he found out that she and Marius had compromised information and pretty much negated the entire agreement? Could the king remove them from the order of the Mist Knights? Technically the king and queen were in charge of the order, even though he took little action in the day-to-day activities and lived far, far away from Dragon Tail Peak and the heart of the Mist Knights' operation. He could put them to death if he wanted to, but the king didn't seem like an unfair male.

Tahlia gulped and wiped sweating palms on her dress. She truly hoped her guess was accurate.

The Witch opened her mouth to speak, but King Lysanael cut her off. She gave him an irritated look, her eyebrows flicking together and her cloudy eyes darting left and right.

"Lady Tahlia," King Lysanael said, "I would like you to report in full what progressed in the city of Midhampton. I see that you have the crown."

Why was he asking her to report and not Marius? As Commander, Marius was the one responsible for reporting to the king. A thought shimmered through Tahlia's mind. Oh. It was the fact that she could lie. Though Queen Revna had acted as if the king knew nothing of their escapade, obviously the two were exchanging information of some sort. Perhaps the king was aware that some information would have to be altered or withheld. And so he had asked Tahlia, hoping she could do the job using the human half of her blood.

Hoping she was doing the right thing, she detailed most of the happenings, but left out pieces of the tale here and there to avoid angering the humans and the Witch who loved the human high queen like a daughter.

The back door of the Witch's house opened, and Tahlia thought Queen Revna had returned. But instead, a slight young girl who couldn't have been older than fifteen walked in. Behind her, a tall woman with silver-shot hair pulled tightly back and wrinkles at the edges of her eyes entered. This was the human high queen and her regent.

Marius inclined his head, not bowing as far as he did for King Lysanael, and Tahlia mimicked the movement. The Witch bowed to no one. The king nodded his head respectfully, a shallower nod than Marius's or Tahlia's.

"Thank you for saving my people," the young queen said.

Her voice was sweet with the newness of youth, but it was steady and strong and gave Tahlia the idea that someday she would be a good queen.

The regent merely pinched her lips together and glared at the king, Marius, and Tahlia in turn.

"And where is the crown?" the regent asked.

King Lysanael lifted it up. "Right here."

The regent's eyes glittered with the look of one plotting something unpleasant. "What are we planning to do with it?"

"Destroying it, as we discussed," the king said, his voice calm but packed with power.

Clasping her hands at her waist, the regent gave the young queen a simpering smile. "Are we sure that is the best course of action? With this crown, we could solve a great many of the world's problems."

"Could you?" the Witch asked, her voice haunting and quiet, though every ear heard it clearly, Tahlia was sure. Anytime the Witch spoke, it was like one had no choice but to listen.

The tension in the room increased so much that it almost felt as though the air buzzed. She blew out a breath, wishing she could tell a joke to lighten the mood.

King Lysanael handed the crown to the Witch. "Destroy it. Now. As we all agreed." He looked over his shoulder at the young queen, ignoring the regent entirely.

"Yes," the young queen said, not a quaver in a single syllable.

Tahlia liked her very much. She smiled at the queen and gave her a nod. The queen grinned back.

The Witch held the crown over the cauldron. "I prepared its destruction. Now, stand back."

She dropped the crown into the steaming mixture. Bright, green light flashed and Tahlia winced, shutting her eyes. When she opened them, red stars filled the air—pinpricks of floating lights that for some reason she didn't want anywhere near her. She shifted her feet to avoid one that floated near her shoulder.

The Witch chanted sounds that were likely magic words and the red stars stilled. The stars shot toward the cauldron. A crack sounded from the bowl's steaming depths. Tahlia held her ears as they rang.

The Witch eyed the cauldron, which had stopped steaming and was only popping lightly. "It is done."

The regent blew air through her nostrils and turned away, her jaw set, while the young queen nodded approvingly.

"Thank you, Witch," King Lysanael said. He turned to face the queen. "Now, I must relay some changes my knights had to make to the plan."

Tahlia stood straight as the king detailed the appearance of Ragewing, the town's response, and then finally, how Tahlia had been forced to kill Durniad.

"I will consider whatever corrections you have in mind to rectify the peace in your town of Midhampton. How can I help?" the king said, crossing his arms and giving the young queen an encouraging look.

The regent whispered into the young queen's ear, but she was foolish if she didn't think King Lysanael and Marius couldn't hear every word. Tahlia couldn't quite catch the whole statement, but she heard her name in there along with donation .

Shaking her head, the queen looked up at King Lysanael. "I'm glad to be done with Durniad. I will simply address the city and declare that we had an agreement with your kingdom. There will be rebellion because of it. A knot of folks there are staunchly set against the Fae. But I will deal with that. You have done us a great service, and I'm glad your knights and your dragon, Ragewing, weren't mortally harmed in the completion of this mission."

"How did you get Lady Tahlia out of the city after the killing?" the regent asked, nearly cutting off her queen.

Marius's eyebrow lifted. "If I may, King Lysanael?" he asked, wanting permission to address the regent.

Tahlia bit her lip. How was this going to go? Gods, she was sweating. She was a damned fountain.

King Lysanael nodded. "Of course, Commander Marius."

Marius spread his hands wide, palms up. "We were the recipients of luck, really."

He couldn't lie. How was he going to keep Queen Revna and Arkyn out of this tale? Why had he offered to speak up?

"A thick fog rolled in that night. Ragewing and I used the cover to evade the ballistae. As my king explained, Lady Tahlia had escaped the guards and climbed to the roof. We simply picked her up and fled before the fog had completely lifted."

"Luck." The queen grinned and studied his face. "A great tale for the ages. I look forward to sharing it with my children someday."

The regent glared but held her tongue.

Tahlia exhaled. Ah, the deceit of simple omission. Of course, Marius was wise enough to keep it simple. She was, once again, so incredibly grateful for him. And for Queen Revna, Arkyn, and Ragewing. She didn't want to imagine what would have happened to her if she'd been stuck in Midhampton with Durniad's blood on her hands. His guards hadn't just been city guards. They were pirates playing roles and Tahlia knew exactly how rough pirates played from the tales Titus and Maiwenn had told her.

"Will you tell me about the city's defenses?" the queen asked, eyeing Marius.

Marius looked to King Lysanael, who nodded. "Well, they have at least four ballista machines…"

He went on about the weapons, approximate numbers of guards, details on the city walls, and so forth.

One thing they hadn't brought up was Durniad's claim that he was allied with the Witch and with the Eelsmen of the North. The Witch didn't even flinch at the news of Durniad dying, so Tahlia doubted he had been telling the truth. Perhaps he had only said it to see how Tahlia would react considering he knew the Witch had dealings with the Fae from time to time.

Should she bring it up? Probably not. She fiddled with her ripped skirts as she pondered. Why didn't more of her Mist Knight training involve how to handle reporting like this? What if she got Marius into trouble by not mentioning Durniad's supposed enemies? Maybe she should just interject. Marius was about finished. She didn't want King Lysanael to mistake their silence on this for any sort of treasonous behavior.

"Also," she began.

Marius looked at her, his usual scowl not giving anything away. She hoped this was the right move.

Tahlia cleared her throat. "Durniad claimed to have allies in the Eelsmen of the North. He said he was in league with the Witch, too."

Marius's face went very blank, as if he was hiding how he felt about her reporting these details.

King Lysanael's mouth parted as if in shock. He whirled to face the Witch. He didn't approach her. His movements were stilted as if he was plenty wary of the scary lady.

"Can you explain Durniad's suggestion of your involvement?" he asked her.

"You have no right to question our Witch," the regent snapped.

The young queen looked from the regent to King Lysanael, obviously unsure on what to do.

The ceiling flickered with blue light, almost like lightning. "Are you accusing me of being disloyal to my queen?"

"You sided with us against her father not so long ago," King Lysanael said.

Tahlia remembered a bit about that story, about how the Witch had hidden the young queen from her father, who at the time had been king. That tale was tied into the one about how Queen Revna had met King Lysanael.

"I did so to protect souls that the former king had in his grip. That situation had changed and your Druid tested the truth of my heart. You recall that day, I'm certain, King Lysanael."

"I do. I wish our Druid was here to mediate."

The great Fae magician was very ill, or so the gossip said. He had once helped the Realm of Lights with many great tasks.

The queen clasped her hands in front of her. A large seal ring on her thumb reflected the light of the scones on the walls. "Well, I trust the Witch, and Durniad is dead, so what does it matter?"

"I suppose it doesn't," the king said quietly. "I offer my apologies, Witch, for questioning your loyalty to your queen."

"Thank you." The Witch watched the king with her haunted eyes. Could she truly see in the way those with normal eyes did?

"As for the Eelsmen," Marius said, watching the rulers as if he wasn't certain he was permitted to speak, "they likely have every criminal on every coastline at least halfway in their gold-heavy pockets, so that's nothing shocking."

Everyone agreed, and the Witch stepped forward. "If you are prepared to travel, I will meet you at Dragon Tail Peak in two days' time."

Would Ragewing take the Witch on his back too?

The Witch's head turned toward Tahlia, and Tahlia swallowed.

"I will travel by way of a portal created only for my body," the Witch said.

"Ah, magic. Of course," Tahlia said, then she buttoned her lip. She hadn't meant to speak that out loud.

The young queen grinned at Tahlia. Tahlia rolled her eyes at herself, which made the queen laugh out loud.

Tahlia wished she could tell Lija that they would be home soon, and the Witch would be showing up in some surely fantastic manner forthwith.

The mission was finally over. Hopefully, Lija would be flying within the next few days.