Chapter 34

CHAPTER 34

T he snow crunched under our boots as we made our way back to the ship. Sure enough, a few inches of snow covered the ground. The wind had died down a few hours ago.

In the light of the following afternoon, Corsha's Enchantment was still mindboggling to say the least. The more I thought on their power, the more questions I had. How did they know someone's vision was true? How was it they had time enough to save Corsha from my father, but did not have the time to help Dra Skor or any of the rest of us? I supposed with so many possible futures and the overlapping of visions, they had to sift through them all and do what they thought best.

It was a lot to consider. I'd stick to palm magic. And wings.

We'd had breakfast and lunch with the young queen and a few of her trusted advisors. They had been kind and welcoming, but the lingering suspicion that they knew more than they were telling us was hard to get past.

It was Corsha. They just knew things.

Meanwhile Dex was avoiding Avril like she had a contagious disease .

She had a bag in hand as she readied to board the ship with us.

"We will keep you safe, Avril," I told her as she walked near me. After the fact, I realized how foolish I likely sounded to her. "I realize you have seen parts of what will happen but thought you might need assurance."

She gave me a tight smile. "I do know some possibilities, but that doesn't mean there aren't gaps in what I've seen. And it's always in those gaps where we struggle. So yes, thank you. I'm nervous, but I'm ready. Your assurance is welcomed."

My eyes went to Dex, already on the ship, speaking to the captain. "He will come around."

She inhaled. "I know that, but again, it's the gaps in what I have seen that I worry about. I thought it best to let him know from the very beginning what I knew rather than hold it over him."

"He is not the type to like being the last to know something," I agreed.

She laughed. "I have waited for him for years. Do you know how hard it is to know he's out there? Know his name and where he is, yet have to wait it out?"

I only had to wait for Esta to figure things out for a few months and that was bad enough.

Amory sidled up to us. "Who would have thought this trip would turn out to be more love matching than realm saving?"

The queen piped in, "Don't the two go hand in hand?"

Amory put up a hand and backed up. "Do not. Do not even tell me. I do not wish to know anything about my future."

The queen smiled. "I do not think you need a vision of ours to figure out what you truly desire, Amory. You know. And it is still your choice. You always have a choice, and that is what makes our visions so complicated. Free will is free will. We may see the visions, but each of our choices is what gets us there." She gave us a shrug. "We do our best not to throw our visions at people, make them feel like they do not have a choice in it. Because you always do."

Avril moved to hug her queen. Amory and I backed up to give the two of them the space to say goodbye. I found that rather than Avril having animosity or jealousy toward her young queen, there was instead immense respect.

Queen Aurelia's people truly did not take issue with her age. They readily welcomed her power.

As Avril headed to board the ship, the queen of Corsha turned to me, pinning all her attention on me.

I had to admit, knowing the strength of what she could do, I couldn't help but want to fidget.

She reached out a hand to my arm, which I barely felt through my heavy black coat. "I do know that it is difficult for outsiders to be in Corsha for even brief periods. Our Enchantment is... different . But I am so thankful we no longer have to hide. To no longer have to cast the projection of a deserted Corsha. There will be a great celebration tonight in Corsha. We knew based on all the visions we'd had these years that we had to maintain the ruse until you showed up, so thank you for coming, Keir."

I gave her a nod, my delegate mask falling back into place like second nature. "Thank you for your hospitality. I am greatly relieved that you were all safe from my father's evil plans. That there is something to celebrate for you all and one less country to free from the poison."

"He was no father to you," she snapped. "And I may have helped save Corsha with my visions, but you and your brother have brought peace to the entire realm. Believe me, I have seen the wars in the possible outcomes. This is best. We are all on the best path." She stepped up and gave me the quickest of hugs. " Thank you , Keir. For being brave enough to take him down. For being brave enough to come."

I inhaled, knowing I had to ask something or it would eat at me the entire trip home. "I do not fully understand your visions, Relia, how many of them come true, or how many of them fall off as a mere possibility. But is there something you have seen or a way you can gauge our chances against Morana?"

She considered my question for a moment, not looking offended at least. Finally, she said, "It's best not to comment on chances as I have not seen what she will do next. But that is why I send you Avril in confidence. She is powerful also, she will help. Being closer to Dra Skor will help her. I will not allow anything to prevent the rise of the brother kings."

"I was more worried about Esta," I admitted. Her continued use of the brother kings phrase made me uncomfortable. Like I had gone to Dra Skor after the throne to begin with, which couldn't be farther from the truth. Though I suppose my intentions did not change the end result, which was what Queen Aurelia saw.

She smiled at me. "We make it common practice to not make promises in Corsha, as at any given moment we know they could become empty. We know how quickly the visions can change. What I can say is that things are dark enough that I am sending you Avril. But things are not so dark that I am coming on that boat with more of my people. Does that make sense?"

Oddly enough that did make a bit of sense. "So the next time I see you, I should run?"

"Hopefully not," she laughed. "Hopefully the next time I see you I am delivering to you the last of your father's poison for you to burn."

"You still have it?" When she told us the story last night, I had just assumed they had destroyed it.

"We kept it as a weapon in case your father never fell. Do not fret, it's safe. Should I die, the location dies with me."

I wasn't really sure what to say to that.

"Now go. Corsha is healthy and stands with Dra Skor and Wylan. "

I had to admit there was a huge weight off my shoulders knowing that three, soon-to-be four of the countries were either healed or on the way to being healed. Wylan had already had success in helping heal a Brakken Enchanted. That left just Agria to help. And sooner or later we were going to have to start helping them or there would be hell to pay for leaving them last. Still, it was a huge check mark off my list. Corsha was fine.

"Thank you," I told Queen Aurelia. "This trip was nothing like I expected, but a welcomed surprise."

I loaded the ship, and as soon as the anchors were pulled, I told Esta, I'm coming home.

Thank goodness. Hurry home.

How are things with Silas?

Bloody? He's in a cell. I had to pull Malachi off him. He is taking it quite hard.

I'll warn Amory.

The two of you are coming home to a mess, I'm afraid. I barely slept with you gone, Malachi is a wreck, and we have a shifter in custody.

But Queen Aurelia said isolating Morana was our next step, I reminded her. I almost wanted to tell her we were on the right path, but then I thought maybe I had just spent too much time in Corsha.

Still, it was a relief to know that though we planned our steps and tried our best to outwit the shadows at every turn, the path we were currently all on was one that would lead somewhere better than the ones behind us.

Are we returning to the dock in Keld? I asked. If Morana had been seen there recently, was that still the plan?

Yes, she answered. I will be there, but I'm bringing an entire group of shifters with me. Zaccai and Zaire's teams will fly with me. I'm somewhat hoping that she is out there somewhere and sees just how many shifters are healed now. So she knows what she's up against.

Though I had used our bond to communicate to Esta numerous times while we were in Corsha, I realized I hadn't told her about Avril yet. Speaking of that, we now have a prophet of sorts to help us....

What?!

I continued to explain the trip to Esta. The intricacy that was Corsha's Enchantment. Before I knew it, an hour had passed, and there I still stood, talking to Esta down our bond. Something which weeks ago seemed like it would never happen.

I was grateful every day to have found her for numerous reasons. She might be the love of my life, the dragon queen, the woman who I yearned for and desired, yet she was also my friend. I valued every facet of her, but the last one still sometimes stunned me. I genuinely enjoyed talking to her and couldn't imagine a day when I could not.

At dawn, at the exact moment Dra Skor first came in view as a blur in the distance, three dragons took to the skies, flying out to meet our ship.

"Glad they're on our side, eh?" the captain chuckled while numerous members of the crew agreed.

Rather than landing on the ship, the three dragons simply flew with us back the rest of the way. Someday soon, I'd get to fly with them. For now, I kept my wings out of sight, grateful that I had gotten to use them some on the way back.

And as soon as I stepped onto the sandy shores of Dra Skor, there she was, running for me. My ring on her finger.

I easily caught her, kissing her hard. "I missed you."

She breathed deeply, pressing her forehead to mine. "Can we wait until things calm down before your next trip?"

I laughed. "I am in no hurry to leave you again any time soon. "

I felt down our bond that she was curious about something. "What is it, Es?"

She smiled at me. "I need some sleep now that you are home. But after that, I have a favor to ask."

I pinned her with a fake glare. She knew she could ask me for anything, and I would give it to her.

But I wasn't expecting her to ask, "Would you heal my brother?"