The Myatheira Chronicles: Volume Three: Crown of Ice Page 32

  “The thought is probable but not likely. If that creature was capable of doing something of that nature, the Ovatai would know about it. It didn’t appear to have an effect on Neomi and I suffered nothing while combating it. If we’re discussing speculations, my mind drifts in a different direction entirely.”

  “And what direction might that be?”

  “Something more complicated,” Callum nodded, the light from his eyes disappearing briefly, his head turned away toward the darkness. “Gadiel? Are you still awake?”

  A rustle of blankets came from the other end of the tent. Gadiel said nothing at first though Edric could hear his footsteps approaching, the soft green of his eyes appearing at Callum’s side. “I was not intentionally eavesdropping,” he whispered. “I’m having difficulty sleeping in this cold.”

  “I didn’t call you to scold you for listening. You have more experience in certain matters than I do. We need your expertise.” Callum motioned for Gadiel to have a seat. “You spent more time in training with the manipulation of energy for military tracking. When we were traveling to Luquarr, you ceased your efforts almost entirely once we reached the most barren parts of the desert. I have only a basic understanding of the fact that our energy is less effective there due to the landscape. Perhaps you could elaborate a bit more for us as to specific reasons?”

  “A lesson like that could take all night. Are you asking for any particular reason?”

  “Try, Gadiel. I’m not a scientific man, but if you say something which catches my attention, I will stop you.”

  Gadiel chuckled quietly, lowering himself to sit between Edric and Callum. “Alright,” he breathed. “The most basic concept behind the energy we use is that it’s similar to that which is found in all living organisms. We merely have an abundance of it. Our surroundings play a large role in the manipulation. Our bodies naturally draw from living organic matter – grass, flowers, trees, moss – that is why Tanispa is most suited to us. The woodlands replenish the energy in our bodies when we use it and prevent us from depleting ourselves. At the same time, this is why we do not abuse the magic. We recognize the fact that it is not something we have an unending supply of. We borrow only enough to do what we must and leave the rest to allow life to continue on. It’s the difference between us and the Ven’shal. They strip the life from nature until there is nothing left and leave behind a decaying shell of what once was there.”

  Intrigued by the information Edric struggled to sit up, leaning forward with rising interest. He understood the functions of the Vor’shai magic, but he had never heard it discussed in such detail before. He found it fascinating to realize that he was so uneducated about something which had been ever-present throughout his entire life. “Were you not able to use the magic in the desert? Did something prevent you from utilizing it?”

  “Not prevent, no,” he shook his head lightly. “It is unwise to push our bodies in a place like that. Living organic matter is few and far between in harsh desert climates and those which exist are usually small and incapable of producing the amount of energy we would require to function without risk of sucking it dry. We are in tune with nature. We can sense these things. When away from life, our bodies feel the void. I have witnessed men in training who have exhausted themselves by overusing the energy in a location where their bodies cannot naturally replenish. It’s assumed, through what little study can safely be done, that our bodies have a specific cache – for lack of a better word – to store energy. We can’t hold any more than that and it is unsafe to possess much less. If we are in a place like the desert and limited in our resources, the magic can still be used, but it will draw from only our internal store rather than having the assistance of the life around us. No one really knows what happens if a Vor’shai depletes themselves entirely of the essence. It isn’t something which can be safely tested and therefore we can only speculate. Personally, I’m not convinced our people can survive without the balance.”

  “This isn’t the desert, however,” Callum mused. “In the heat, the sand is the main source of the landscape. Here, although covered in snow, there is life underneath. In some areas we have even found trees plentiful, although I have noticed fewer since we entered the colder regions. Why would the use of our magic here cause a reaction like this?”

  “You think my sudden weakness was caused by my attack on the Boeikath?” Edric asked, surprised by the suggestion. He’d never considered it. In a way it made sense. Neomi mentioned a lack of energy within his body. The strange scattered pockets which hindered the balance of his system. It explained almost everything – except for how it happened.

  “Could be any number of reasons,” Gadiel shrugged. “Now that I think about it, the possibility is more likely than we realize. There may be life here but it is covered with layer upon layer of ice and snow. Perhaps our bodies simply… cannot reach it. If that is the case then Edric won’t be feeling himself again for a while unless we can either find a more suitable area, or if we can convince one of the Ovatai to infuse some of their energy into him. That would require them to feel compassion for our plight, though I have a suspicion they would only view it as another of our weaknesses.”

  The Ovatai. They were the detail which continued to nag at the back of Edric’s mind. How did they survive in this place if the use of energy was so unsafe? They manipulated it as if it was nothing. “I don’t understand,” he mumbled. “If our energy is so useless here, how can the Ovatai still utilize theirs?”

  Gadiel chuckled quietly. “The Ovatai magic is far more complex than ours. They don’t require the energy to be inside a living organism. We are surrounded by organic matter which is filled with energy beyond the scope of Vor’shai understanding. They don’t always draw the energy out when they use it, but have learned how to manipulate the energy inside the very matter itself. It’s how they push the air where they want it to go. Force the wind to blow. They aren’t taking energy from anything, merely controlling it. You would be surprised by the strength they possess that we have yet to see. For example,” Gadiel turned his attention to Edric, the smile on his face slowly fading. “Are you aware of how Neomi created the hiding place which saved you from that creature? I investigated it before I followed you and Callum back to the camp. It’s rather impressive, really.”

  “I wasn’t in a frame of mind which allowed me to pay much attention.”

  “There was a break in the ground. A place where the ice had cracked and the level of the surface dropped. Using that as a wall for cover, she then must have used the wind to conceal you both under a drift of snow, increasing the temperature to melt the surface briefly and turn it to ice once exposed to the cold again, solidifying the shield between you and the Boeikath. It is absolutely incredible.”

  Resting his chin in his hands Edric pondered Gadiel’s words. It was incredible. He’d been there with her when it happened and somehow failed to appreciate the effort she took for the sake of his protection. Vaguely he recalled the heat emanating from Neomi’s body. At the time it didn’t register what she was doing, but Gadiel was right. And it was so natural to her! Although she spoke of him saving her life, he couldn’t argue the fact that she had in turn saved his. “But what does this mean for us?” he asked quietly. The severity of their situation was slowly starting to sink in. If they couldn’t use their magic in Ethrysta, what good were they against the Avaern? Simple swords and bows didn’t seem enough.

  “It means we’re going to be far less useful to the Ovatai than I believe they hoped,” Callum replied, speaking out loud the words Edric dreaded to admit. “Unless we can convince the Ovatai to work with us, triage will be next to impossible for the wounded. Energy manipulation to staunch blood or hasten the healing of minor wounds will be too dangerous without their help. This will deplete our numbers quickly and increase the death count of Vor’shai soldiers by more than I’m comfortable with. We can’t do this if the Ovatai are going to continue working against us. They aren’t used to teamwork. At le
ast not like this. Group hunting tactics they have down to a science but when it comes to aiding a fallen warrior, they live by survival of the fittest. We need to make them see that they will never win that way. If they can’t be convinced, then I will pull our men out of the battle. I refuse to see the lives of our people lost due to the negligence of our allies.”

  “And if the Avaern destroys the Ovatai and comes to Tanispa?”

  Callum let his gaze rest on Edric, solemn. Austere. “Then we fight it on our home ground. Together,” he nodded decisively. “For now we need to try and get to sleep. Any information we can learn about the Avaern from our journey to Isavo is crucial if this battle bleeds into our homeland. If the Ovatai don’t come around, a battle in Tanispa will be inevitable. We cannot make the same mistakes they do.”

  The fresh air of the night was relaxing. More comfortable than the Vor’shai tents. Neomi preferred the snow, finding it a comfort amongst so many things which were out of place in her life as of late. Although they were surrounded by the strangers from Tanispa, the snow and the cold Ethrystan breeze were ever constant. She inhaled of it deeply, lying back on the icy surface to stare up at the stars.

  She couldn’t help thinking about the Vor’shai Prince. His physical condition was questionable when she left him there in the snow. The silence coming from the tent where he lay was unnerving. Was he alive? Did his friends watch over him? It was a strange concept to consider. In the battlefield it was unusual for soldiers to watch out for one another. Never had she witnessed anyone risk their own life for the sake of saving another. After the terrible way she had treated Edric since they first met, he selflessly threw himself in the way of the Boeikath to protect her from harm, injuring himself in turn. Her fellow Ovatai never would have done such a thing. If a warrior fell in battle, it was because the gods had determined it to be their fate. Yet here she was. Living on borrowed time from the gods that she shouldn’t have. The Boeikath was supposed to strike her down. She wasn’t sure whether to be grateful for Edric’s unexpected bravery or angry with him for disrupting the plan of the gods.

  He was such a strange man. Confusing. She never knew what he was going to do next. The Vor’shai were unpredictable. They lived life on a whim, running from one moment to the next, seemingly without a plan or care for what might happen to them. That was the fault in allowing your actions to be guided by emotions. Mistakes were too easy to make. Emotions were nothing more than a distraction. She had been brought up to suppress them yet for some reason when in Edric’s presence he forced something to surface inside her that made her uncomfortable. Why did she care what happened to that man? If he was to die before morning, Moinie would be unaffected by the loss. It didn’t make sense why she felt so compelled to go to him. To assure herself that he would be alright.

  “Neomi?”

  Her heart sank to hear Moinie’s voice. It disrupted the tranquility of the night. “Go away,” she huffed. “I have nothing to say to you.”

  “What is wrong with you?” Moinie continued, insistent, moving across the snow to sit next to Neomi in the darkness. “I am speaking to you as a friend when I say that I am worried about you. Your father would be displeased if he was aware of your behavior this evening. He never would have allowed such distractions to take place.”

  “Distractions? What exactly do you refer to?”

  “The games. Socializing with the Vor’shai men. What possessed you to participate in their nonsense when we had just decided not to let them run rampant on our lands?”

  “I did it to spite you,” Neomi replied tersely. It was the truth. When faced with the inviting look on Edric’s face and the ball of snow in his hands, all she could think about was how angry it would make her friend. She was tired of being told what to do by someone of inferior rank. In a way it felt good to torment the poor man for the sake of her own enjoyment. To laugh. She’d forgotten what it was like. Laughter was not something the Ovatai had occasion to do often.

  Moinie was quiet for a moment. Thinking on Neomi’s response. “To spite me?” she questioned. “Have we come to that? You would risk the lives of our people over me? What have I done which angers you to that extent? Does this have to do with that man?”

  “What man?” Neomi scoffed. “I would never risk the lives of our people over a man and you know it.”

  “Then what is it? You have not been yourself since you laid eyes on him in Tanispa. Before then, you used to listen to my counsel. Now you are quick to throw it in my face. You may think I don’t notice, but you have been less than subtle in your interest regarding him. I know the truth behind your inquiries with the Vor’shai woman. Let me tell you something, Neomi,” she leaned forward, forcing her way into Neomi’s line of sight, a grave expression on her face. “You need to stop. Whatever curiosity you hold toward that man cannot be allowed to go on. When we return to Nahedu, he should be placed under the command of Ewei or Onuric so as to keep him distanced from you until their people leave our country.”

  She stared at Moinie, bewildered by what her friend suggested. She thought there was an interest? What would make her think something like that? The man was impossible. Her interest in him was purely for the sake of understanding his people. Their customs. She was using him. Could Moinie not see that? “You are mistaken,” she said calmly, staring past her friend to the stars over her shoulder. “Edric is nothing more than a tool. A means of gaining the information and sway over the Vor’shai men that is required to manipulate their soldiers in a manner best suited to our needs. I am not going to rely on Sahra’s pompous claims that she can accomplish this through seduction. Her ways are flawed and I am convinced she holds less control over these men than she thinks.”

  “If that is your intention, then why waste your time with frivolous inquiries about Sahra’s feelings toward him? Why douse yourself with that ridiculous oil when it only dulls your senses. What did you hope to prove?”

  “That she was wrong,” Neomi said simply. “While Edric recognized the scent, he was not hypnotized the way she seemed to think he would be. And as for her feelings toward him, I intend to use them against her if it becomes necessary. If I need something from the Vor’shai men, I can take the word of her treacherous plans to seduce her way into a crown and lay them before Edric. In exchange, I might be able to manipulate him. Convince him to make his people see things our way. You need to stop questioning me, Moinie. I know what I am doing.”

  “That may be so, but it does not change my opinion,” she frowned, leaning back to follow Neomi’s gaze toward the sky. “It is a dangerous game you attempt to play. We cannot risk you getting too close to him. While I understand your hope of using him to our advantage, I see signs when you are around him which concern me. Your eyes linger too long. You let him stand too close. I need you to be honest, Neomi. When you were hiding from the Boeikath, did he touch you in any way that I should be informed of ?”

  Neomi exhaled a long breath, unsure of what to say. She couldn’t tell her about Edric’s illness. It would ease Moinie’s concerns about what happened between them while at the same time it would add to her belief that the Vor’shai men were weak and pathetic. She had thought that herself once as well. Now she realized they were more than that. Different, but no less capable of fighting this war than the Ovatai. They just needed everyone to believe in them.

  Her mouth opened to speak, catching her breath before the words could form. A fleeting memory in the back of her mind flashed in front of her eyes, sending a chill down her spine, confused by the revelation. She saw herself lying there on top of Edric, his breath ragged from the strain his body suffered at the loss of his internal energy. He had touched her then. Briefly, but undeniable. And she’d done nothing to stop him. She couldn’t recall what was going through her head. Why didn’t she slap his hand away? It was harmless. Whatever her reasons, she wouldn’t make that same mistake again. Moinie didn’t need to know about it. No one would ever know and if Edric tried to tell anyone, she would denou
nce him as nothing more than a liar.

  “He kept his hands to himself,” she said quietly, sinking down into the snow with a relaxed sigh. She had everything under control. If only her friend would trust her to do the job she was given. “You worry too much, Moinie,” she added, turning onto her side to seek a more comfortable position, indicating she was no longer interested in the conversation. “He is just a man. One who means absolutely nothing. Now, I am tired. There is no telling what we might come across between here and Isavo and we cannot have our thoughts clouded from fatigue if the Avaern reveals itself again.”

  Throughout the day Neomi kept a subtle watch over the Vor’shai men. She was curious about Edric’s health though Moinie’s hawkish gaze prevented her from doing anything which might ease her mind. The usual vivid silvery-blue glow of his eyes was dulled, almost grey against the ashen complexion he now possessed. Dark circles marred the handsome features of his face. He looked worse than he had the night before though he fought to hide his weakened condition, the other men keeping close every step of the way, offering their arm when he stumbled. He was in no shape to make this journey. If she could have prolonged their stay at the camp without sparking Moinie’s suspicions – but no. She couldn’t waste time because of a single man. They needed to reach Isavo quickly and uncover anything they could about the Avaern. Onuric and her father were waiting for them in Nahedu. The longer they dawdled, the greater risk she placed her people in.