Chapter 8

Chapter

Eight

Four hours later on the dot, dutiful Alek woke me up and then crawled into his sleeping bag for some rest. I brushed my teeth, ate some jerky, and drank some coffee by the fire with Dev and a few of Kohen's alliance.

I could see the sleeping form of Kohen in his bag just at the edge of the forest, and I wondered why he hadn't bonded with anything today. I wondered that for myself as well. The rhesus monkey would have been quite impressive, but impressive enough for my father? I wasn't sure, so I passed. Coyotes were known for being untrustworthy tricksters, and I wasn't sure what my people would think of that bonding, so I passed on that as well. I feared I was getting into the dangerous zone of day three with no bonding, when you were either forced out of The Wilds by the imperial soldier mop-up crew, and a total shame to society, or you bonded with a really lower-level creature out of desperation. This was the night that lottery winners started to turn on each other, worrying that there weren't enough creatures for all of us. Which I was starting to believe was true. We hadn't seen many out there today, unless we weren't good at tracking. But it seemed they were sparse. More so than I thought.

I repacked my bag, taking inventory of what I had left, trying to think up a gameplan for the next day, when I noticed Kohen rise slowly out of his sleeping bag, grab his pack, and look back at Dev.

Dev nodded once and then Kohen peered at me.

I frowned and he turned, slipping off into the woods.

What the hell was that? Where was he going?

I shouldered my own pack and started after him, but Dev reached out to stop me.

"Let him go," he warned.

"Don't touch me," I told him.

He removed his hand and I nudged Roc awake with my foot. He'd been sleeping a while by my count, but still looked bleary-eyed. I didn't trust Dev to protect a sleeping Alek.

"Look out for Alek. I'll be back in a bit," was all I said.

Roc nodded, rising out of his sleeping bag and asking zero questions. That's what I liked about the Imperial Fleet brats, we all knew how to take orders.

I had to run to catch up, but I chased Kohen through the tree line and followed him into a deeper part of the woods. He was consulting a map with an ember-lit headlamp that looked Fleet-issued. Another thing he stole.

"Coming along for the ride, princess?" Kohen said without looking back.

I rolled my eyes, sidling up to him. "How did you know it was me?"

He flicked his gaze my way. "Your smell."

I scrunched my face up and sniffed my armpit. "I could use a shower," I agreed.

He grinned, and stars have mercy my thighs clenched with need when he did. "Not that. You smell like coconut, vanilla."

Oh. My shampoo?

I flicked my gaze to the map. "Where are you going?" We had been heading northwest for days and I feared we were dangerously close to the Luska border.

He swallowed hard and stopped walking. "Listen, I don't want to hurt you, but if you try to stop me I will."

I took a step backward. "What do you mean? Stop you doing what?"

He handed me the map and I peered down at it. I'd seen hundreds of maps of The Wilds. It was like a rite of passage to have one hanging in your house, but never had I seen one that looked this old, this detailed. The river cut through the center, the higher hilly regions, and the circled upper left corner that read Talanagi—the left corner that was in the Luska portion of The Wilds, beyond the wall we'd built to keep them out and lessen their attacks.

I gasped. "You're not…"

He yanked the map from me. "I am. It's clear to me now that if I don't do something like this, your father will never stop hunting me." He lifted his shirt to reveal his eight perfectly defined abs and two more large gashes that had been stapled.

"I've run out of staples, Aisling. I'm tired and out of options. I'd rather die at the foot of a Talanagi than by an assassination attempt because of your father."

I didn't have anything to say to that. In fact, I was questioning why I didn't kill him for my father right here.

Kohen kept walking and I had a moment of indecision.

Should I kill him and do the job I knew my father wanted done?

Should I just let him go?

Should I follow him?

He disappeared over the hill and I ran after him.

Damn my curiosity!

"The Talanagi are so powerful they will kill you just by staring at you," I said.

Kohen laughed. "I don't care. I'm going to find them and bond with one."

I had to admit his confidence was sexy.

There was an Amersean man a hundred years ago that we had record of who'd bonded with a griffin Talanagi, but none had been seen or bonded with in Amersea since.

"Besides, what do you care what happens to me?" Kohen asked as he peered sidelong at me.

I shifted my pack a little. "I don't. I'm just curious."

We walked in silence for another half hour with Kohen consulting his map every few minutes. I was beginning to regret my decision when we reached The Wall.

I swallowed hard, staring up at the giant thirty-foot stone structure.

"What now?" I asked as Kohen walked towards the river that split Imbria and Amersea.

"Now I swim to the Luska side. The Talanagi are said to be just on the other side of this wall."

My eyes bugged and I reached out to grasp his arm, stopping him. "Dude, first of all, you could be eaten by a river shark… and secondly, you're going into Luska?" I widened my eyes.

If there was one thing Imbria and Amersea agreed on, it was our hatred of Luska. The war-hungry nation wanted our embers in their factories and our people in chains. Their strip of The Wilds, and therefore access to ember, was tiny compared to what Amersea and Imbria had. We were an unstoppable nation with that much ember.

His eyes practically glowed blue as he stepped closer to me and seemed to peer directly into the center of my soul. "If it means I have to swim through shark-infested waters and over into enemy territory to survive, I'll do it. I'll do just about anything to survive, Aisling. Something I don't think you know much about. So why don't you wait here for me where it's safe…"

He spun then, ripping his arm from my grasp, and waded into the river.

Bastard! Was he saying I didn't know how to survive hard things? Or that I'd never had to? Did he have any idea what being the emperor's daughter entailed? If we climbed The Wall we'd be killed by the guards up top. The only way over was in the river and around.

With a growl I took off after him, letting the cool water lap at my ankles as I held the pack over my head like he did.

He gave me a backward glance but said nothing. I should turn back. I could literally be killed if the Luskins found us in their territory. Or worse, kidnapped and tortured for days on end. But I did wonder, why did Kohen's map show the Talanagi on the Luska side? It kind of made sense… because over twenty percent of the creatures the Luskins bonded to were Talanagi. That's what made them such a formidable foe. Was it because the creatures bred there on the other side of the wall and we'd unknowingly blocked them out when we erected it? That would be very stupid if that was the case. My father would rip the wall down if he found it to be true.

I peered up at the top of the wall, looking for soldiers, but found none. Kohen reached the shore on the Luska side and scrambled up the steep embankment. Next it was my turn. I got one boot into the mud and slipped, swallowing a yelp as I sank into the river, drenching myself and my pack. When my head bobbed back up, Kohen was there, reaching down to haul me up out of the water as if I were made of air.

He steadied me, setting me on my feet, and I stared at him a little breathlessly as water rolled down my face and clothing. "Thanks," I muttered.

He just nodded and continued walking, consulting his map, and I followed because I was a curious idiot.

There was no turning back now. I was either following Kohen into a trap where he killed me, or we really did find the Talanagi and we both died. Either way I didn't see many options where we both made it out of enemy territory alive.

Suddenly his arm shot out and grasped my stomach, holding me back.

I'd been looking out into the tree line, but at his stopping me, I peered down to follow his gaze.

"What the hell is that?" I whisper-screamed.

The giant golden egg that lay at my feet was bigger than a small child.

Kohen's head snapped up, and then in one swift move he yanked me closer to him and tucked me behind him, shielding me from something.

I growled against his back. "I don't need you to protect m?—"

The words died in my throat as I peered over his shoulder at the giant black, scaled… dragon.

Talanagi.

An ancient magical creature. It was… real.

Kohen and the dragon were in an epic stare down, and my heart hammered in my chest like a fragile bird. Kohen released the hand he'd been using to keep me behind him and pulled his broadsword.

"If I die, tell Anika to take care of my little brothers," he said calmly.

Holy crap. He was going for it.

I was no fool. I took three slow but large steps backward. I wasn't about to get in the middle of a fight with a Talanagi.

Part of me wanted to run back to the camp. Another part wanted to stay and watch even if it meant seeing Kohen die. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I wasn't about to miss it.

I was wondering who would strike first when the dragon's tail flicked so fast and hard it sent Kohen flying into a nearby tree. He hit the trunk with a thud and slid to the ground. The second he hit the mossy forest floor, he popped up as if nothing had happened and he wasn't hurt. Then he ran right at the creature.

I barely blinked. I couldn't look away. Kohen had balls of steel and no fear. He leapt into the air, sword arm raised, and the dragon shot a stream of fire right in Kohen's direction. The Imbrian rolled midair and barely missed it, falling to the ground with a yelp.

He popped up a mere second later, his shirt bleeding from where I was guessing his staples had just opened up. Watching him fight was a thing of beauty. Technically, they hadn't started the bonding process yet; no one had drawn blood from the other. The blood from Kohen's old injury wouldn't count. If Kohen wasn't strong enough to make the beast bleed, the dragon would kill him.

Kohen needed a distraction. I didn't know why I did it, or why I wanted to help him, but I stepped out into the clearing.

"Is this your egg?" I yelled really loudly, pointing to the golden oblong sphere.

The dragon's gaze snapped to mine, and Kohen ran faster than my eyes could track, slashing out with his sword and dragging it clear across the dragon's chest.

Blue blood dripped onto the blade and the bonding began.

Yes!

‘No, It's mine,' a female voice called into my mind, and I froze.

I slowly pivoted on my heel, turning around. When my gaze fell on the creature behind me, my heart stopped beating. I was sure I was going to drop dead right there as I stared into the eyes of the most magnificent creature I'd ever seen.

She stood over ten feet tall, with feathers that looked like they danced with fire. They started gold at the base and moved to purple and even burnt orange. She stood erect on two large, taloned feet, and stared at me with glowing purple eyes.

A firebird.

They were real. All Talanagi were special, but firebirds were said to be immortal, escaping even death itself.

I wanted to run, get the hell out of this place so fast and forget I'd ever found the Talanagi hideout, but I couldn't look away from those purple eyes. They peered right through me, challenging me to prove my worth.

Ignoring the sounds of Kohen fighting behind me, I thought of what Elaine said. That she'd specifically told me not to go for a Talanagi, that at times I was too cocky.

I held the beautiful bird's gaze, my fingers twitching over my sword, and then my father flashed into my mind.

If I bonded a firebird, there was no telling what he would do. I knew he loved me and was proud of me, but… he was also very career-driven. He took threats to his leadership seriously. I knew he would never hurt me, but the thought of doing something that he disapproved of made me… uncomfortable. He might very likely make Valor his heir instead. I relaxed my hand, and even though I hadn't felt the urge to look away, I did, and gave her my back, intending to leave this place and never think on it again.

A whoosh of air rushed over me, and a second later her talon ripped through my back. I screamed, falling to the ground, as panic washed over me.

Blood was drawn. That meant I had to fight.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

With a growl, I rolled on my back and lashed out just as the creature tried to bite a chunk out of my arm. My sword slashed across her face and she shrieked, reeling backward. I used the space between us to pop up onto my feet.

This was really happening. After all my years of training, I was now in a bonding fight with a freaking Talanagi!

If I survived this, which wasn't likely, Elaine was going to kill me.

The creature's nostrils flared and her beak opened to reveal a mouth full of sharp, serrated teeth.

Awesome.

Some candidates survived their bonding fight but were missing an arm or leg. I was really hoping this wasn't the case here. But I had to show her that I was strong enough to be her equal; otherwise she would continue to try to kill me.

She opened her mouth and a stream of fire shot from it. I yelped, ducking and rolling to the side. The blast of heat hit my back and was gone as I moved out of the way. By the time I popped back up, she was on me again, relentless. She flew up into the air, trying to dig her talons into my shoulders. I managed to nick her leg with my dagger and draw blood as I rolled out of the way, but it barely stopped her.

An explosion of colored lights pulled my attention about twenty feet to the right, and shock ripped through me.

Kohen? Was he actually alive and bonding the dragon?

Before I had time to focus on the thought, the firebird smacked me in the face with her wing and I went down, ears ringing.

My vision went double, and that's when something inside of me snapped. That feral need to survive bloomed in my chest like it did with every candidate when you reached a certain point in your fight that you thought you might be losing.

I needed to stop thinking so much. I needed to react on instinct.

With a warrior's cry, I charged forward, slashing out with my sword left and right as the firebird deftly flew zigzags out of the way, breathing fire at me once more.

I tucked into a ball and rolled at the last second, but felt the burn of singed skin along my back. The fresh cuts she'd made with her talons were raw, but I was running on adrenaline. She was fast, too fast, and at this rate I knew this fight wasn't going to last long.

I sheathed my dagger, keeping my broadsword out, and reached down to get a fistful of dirt. The next time she snapped her beak at me, I tossed the dirt into her face. She blinked, turning away, and I used the distraction to drag my blade along her wing, ripping some of those beautiful feathers out. It felt criminal to try to destroy an animal as stunning as she was, but I knew I had to get her to submit in order to start the bond or I was dead. The creatures of The Wilds lived in a kill-or-be-killed mentality. Their resources here were limited, and they were constantly fighting each other over them.

Her right leg shot out and swept my feet out from under me, knocking me flat on my back. Then her talon locked on to my leg with an iron grip. The razor-sharp claws cut into the meat of my calf, and before I even knew what was happening, I was being hauled into the air, upside-down.

My first thought was to tighten the grip on my broadsword.

I did, and even though she was flying up with my body hanging upside-down fifty feet over the jungle of The Wilds of Luska, I knew I had her. She had no idea that I'd done a hundred sit-ups a day hanging from a device that forced me to be upside-down in my father's gym.

I pulled myself up so that I could kiss my knees if I wanted, and pressed the tip of my sword against her throat.

She peered down at me with surprise, the intelligence in her gaze very apparent.

"I'll do it," I warned. If I killed her, it would kill me too. A drop from this height wasn't survivable, but I'd do it just to prove I won the fight.

I felt something knock against my chest, an invisible force boring its way into my heart.

The bond?

Then the colors burst from her back, raining down and curling under me. I had a wild thought that we must look like fireworks to anyone peering upward at that moment.

Everything they told you about the bonding in school, about the instant closeness you would feel for your creature in that moment, it paled against reality.

In a single second I knew almost everything there was to know about Liana. And she knew nearly everything about me. I knew her name, I knew that she'd had many children who were now gone, either passed on or… not here. It was hard to explain. I knew she was over a thousand years old and that she didn't like snow but longed to see it. I knew that her mate died a decade ago and she'd been empty ever since, a hollow shell waiting for her own end, but her end would never come. I knew she was immortal, the only type of Talanagi to achieve such a thing, and only because she was female. Male firebirds like her mate did not have such magic. I knew she longed to leave this place, that this enclosure called The Wilds was a prison for her and every other creature, but they could not survive outside without the bond of a human. Even her. Even an immortal. She needed me. She wanted me. She'd been biding her time, craving an end, and now I was her way out.

In that same instant, she knew I was the emperor of Amersea's daughter, an impossible role to fill. That Jace was the first guy I ever loved and trusted and he betrayed me. She knew that I hated broccoli and loved the rain. That Tetra was my best friend and I would do anything to protect her. It was hard to explain such a detailed sharing of instant information, telepathic in a way, but I felt when it started to fade and the bond began to seal itself.

Her name was Liana and she had found her equal, someone she would die for, protect with her life. And I felt the same.

I was so excited to have actually survived this that laughter bubbled in my chest as she began her descent and the colors around us began to fade.

We were about ten feet from the ground when she peered down at me with compassion. ‘Be strong, Aisling. For the both of us.' She spoke into my mind and I frowned just as she exploded into a ball of fire, encompassing my entire body in the flames. Pain like I'd never felt before consumed me, and then everything went black as I greeted death with surprise.