Air Awakens: Water's Wrath - Air Awakens: Water's Wrath Part 18
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Air Awakens: Water's Wrath Part 18

"What?" Erion was jarred from his thoughts. "Oh, yes, everything is fine."

The man quickly launched into an explanation of what he wanted Vhalla to do. It was a simple enough task, producing wind for the archers to train in. Vhalla listened absentmindedly, her mind churning over the fact that something was definitely wrong with her companion.

But Erion kept his secrets to himself, returning to the center table alone.

At first, the archers were skeptical about her presence, but Vhalla had an unexpected ace. Tim was among them, and the young woman was hasty to tell the grand tales of the Windwalker to her comrades who hadn't been to war and hadn't already heard. So they approached the range with a timid curiosity that quickly vanished into annoyance when most of their arrows shot wide of their targets due to Vhalla's wind.

It ended up being a competition of the Windwalker versus the Empire's best archers. They began taking her seriously, finding ways for their arrows hit their targets in spite of her winds. Those arrows were points for them, the ones on the ground were points for her.

She could make it so that not one arrow hit its target, but Vhalla kept the sport fair, enjoying the game. The score was almost even when three archers left the shooting line to make room for one more. Vhalla's hands fell to her sides, and the winds quieted.

"Gwaeru," the Northern woman called.

Vhalla stared at Za blankly. She wasn't sure what emotion she should summon for the woman who was plotting treason.

"I prefer Lady Yarl, actually," she corrected loudly. Vhalla hardly cared for the use of titles, but she didn't want to give the woman the power of taking her name from her-of reducing Vhalla once more to nothing more than the Emperor's Windwalker.

"Lady Yarl," the woman smiled, which quickly turned into a sneer. "I want shoot."

"We are practicing shooting in the wind tonight," Vhalla announced.

"Fine." The woman fixed her armguard to her left wrist, adjusting a large wooden bow in her hand.

Without another word Za reached for an arrow in the quiver at her side. Vhalla raised her hands. A strong wind blew across the range. All arrows were knocked off course-all except for one. Vhalla met the eyes of the Northern archer, a frown tugging at her lips.

The next arrow hit. The wind blew harder. The third almost missed. Vhalla shifted the direction of the breeze. The fourth was knocked off course. She fought a smirk and looked back to the woman. It had begun.

Four quivers in, Vhalla was almost breathless, as was the other woman. The ground looked like a porcupine made of arrows, illuminated by the high moon.

"That's enough," Za announced, throwing her bow over her shoulder.

Vhalla shrugged, wiping her brow. She looked for Fritz and Grahm, but it appeared that they had already departed without her. In fact, almost no one was around. Time seemed to have escaped her.

"Gwaeru." Za's voice was close, and Vhalla turned, unsurprised to find the woman a few short steps away. The bow was still in her hand, armguard still on, quiver mostly full. Vhalla eyed them uneasily, keeping the wind under her palms.

"I said my name was Lady Yarl."

Za ignored Vhalla's correction. "Sehra wish to give you chance."

Vhalla scowled. "I don't want to be involved with either of you."

"And I don't want you," Za hissed. "But you keep with Achel. You and Fire Lord."

Vhalla stilled, bringing her eyes to Za's emerald ones.

"Sehra know, she know he now touch Achel, too."

A quiet horror crept through her, whispering her worst fears. Vhalla's lips were quiet, but her mind was loud. The taint creeping through her bond with Aldrik must have progressed farther if Sehra could pick it up. Or maybe it was just consistent, but no worse?

Vhalla knew she had to find him. She hadn't sought him out once in the weeks since their meeting in his garden. But now she'd haunt the library for a certain sorcerer prince.

"Give us Achel."

"No." Vhalla frowned. She was so close to getting rid of it for good.

"Prince already half monster. If he become whole monster, I will shoot to kill."

Vhalla's arm snapped out, gripping Za's bow before the woman had time to pull it away. Za tugged but Vhalla held fast. The Northerner's gaze met hers, and Vhalla narrowed her eyes threateningly.

"If you as much as think of touching him, I will kill you myself," Vhalla growled.

"Sehra has new deal." Za smiled maliciously, knowing what she was about to do would drive Vhalla mad. "But she tell her future husband, no more deals with Gwaeru."

Vhalla shoved the bow back into Za's hand in frustration. The woman grinned and took a few steps backward before starting for the palace. This was a bigger game than Vhalla and Aldrik. They all knew it. But her love for the prince was being made into an easy pawn.

She stilled.

Her love for the prince.

For the first time in months, Vhalla had admitted it to herself. She gripped her watch tightly. There it was, the truth. Now, what to do with it?

Vhalla found herself looking for Aldrik's light on her way up the Tower. She looked for the tiny, flickering mote that stood against the darkness. And didn't find it.

HE RAN THROUGH the halls with a blond-haired toddler on his heels. His excitement for the small bundle he held in his hands was palpable. Aldrik couldn't be more than seven or eight. He had a goofy smile, and his hair was cut straight across the middle of his neck.

"Do you think she'll like it?" Aldrik asked the boy. Vhalla looked at the little Baldair struggling to keep up with his brother's longer strides.

"Yes!" he said with all the black and white certainty of a child. Baldair carried a little parcel himself.

They ended up at the top of a grand staircase with a large pair of doors that formed a blazing sun between them. There were two guards stationed outside who both gave small nods to the princes. Baldair stood regally tall for his small stature.

"I am here to see mommy!" he announced. Aldrik actually laughed at his brother's antics.

A guard chuckled and opened the door. "After you, little prince."

The room was massive. The main area was just a sitting room. On the ceiling, there was a large dome with a sun, and on the floor was a mosaic map of the continent made in painstaking detail. More rooms indicated that the Imperial quarters extended beyond, but Aldrik and Baldair ran to a woman sitting on the wide balcony.

"Happy birthday!" Baldair proclaimed.

"Happy birthday." Aldrik stood a step back, fussing with the wrapping on his gift.

"My little Baldair." The even younger Empress was pure radiance. Long golden hair flowed to her mid-back in waves. Her skin was aglow with youth, a soft pink on her cheeks. There was not a single sign of exhaustion or stress upon her face. She picked up the younger boy and placed him in her lap. "Did you remember my birthday?"

"We did," Baldair announced proudly. "Look! Look!" He held out the present, far too close to her face, and she accepted it with a laugh.

"All right, all right, let us see here." The woman wrapped her arms around the boy in her lap, opening the gift.

Aldrik shifted his hands again around his gift, looking up at the woman, his heart beating in anticipation.

"Oh, my little noble prince, this is simply perfect." The woman held a small wreath, haphazardly put together with twigs and sticks. There was some twine in some places; in others, it seemed to have come undone and a stick popped open awkwardly.

"It's a crown!" Baldair explained. "A birthday crown!"

"A birthday crown indeed." The woman put it on her head nicely and gave a kiss on the boy's forehead. Aldrik looked on with longing and sadness.

"I-I brought a present also." Aldrik took a step forward.

"So I see." The woman turned to the elder child staring up at her as she stroked Baldair's hair lovingly.

"I hope you like it." Aldrik presented it with both hands.

The woman took in a deep breath and held in a sigh. She took Aldrik's present with one hand and unwrapped it quickly. It was a little mass of molten silver, like a sun, with a loop around the top.

"I've been study-"

"I have, Aldrik; speak properly," the woman interrupted.

"I have been studying my sorcery," Aldrik began again. "I-it's a, it's-"

"It is, and don't stutter," the Empress corrected for a second time.

Nervousness radiated off the boy. How could this woman not see the same?

"It is a pendant," the boy Aldrik finally managed. "I thought you would-"

"Yes, thank you, Aldrik." The Empress looked away and adjusted the twig crown on her head. "Did you see the gift Baldair made?"

"I did." Aldrik looked at his feet.

"He helped me, mother!" Baldair grinned, completely oblivious to any tension.

"I am sure you picked up quickly and did it even better, my smart son." The woman kissed his golden forehead again.

Baldair nodded. "I did try!"

"It shows." The Empress gave her child a hug.

Aldrik was left standing alone, staring at his feet, a few steps away.

A rapid set of knocks jolted her from sleep.

Vhalla sat with a start, clutching her watch, the memory of the child Aldrik fresh. Her heart ached for the elder prince. Aldrik being called the black sheep and him taking it to heart suddenly made a lot more sense.

More knocks on the door jarred her from her thoughts. Vhalla flopped back on the bed, rolling over and burying herself under the covers. The mornings were frigid now, nearly cold enough to form frost on the glass of her window. The chill combined with her latest dream made her utterly uninterested in company.

The knocking persisted, the person clearly not getting the point.

"What?" she said with a groan.

The door opened a crack, and a pair of Western eyes looked in at her. Vhalla peered at Jax through thin slits. The man chuckled and let himself into her room.

"Lucky you, sleeping past dawn." He wiggled onto the small bed next to her.

Vhalla rolled her eyes and pressed against the wall. The tall man was comically large atop the small mattress, his side flush against hers. But Vhalla had come to an understanding with the strange man known as Jax Wendyll. After their short time in the Crossroads, there was something base, gritty, yet simple about their relationship; it was ugly beautiful.

"I'd like to keep sleeping, you know," she mumbled and buried her face into her pillow. It was cramped with two, but having someone next to her again was relaxing. Larel and Aldrik had both been Firebearers, and Jax was equally warm.

"But I need you."

Vhalla cracked open one eye. "How?"

"Oh, in all the worst ways." Jax waggled his eyebrows.

"Mother, you're awful." Vhalla's dry remark earned a laugh. "Jax, really, why are you crawling into my bed?"

"Really, we could use your help on the grounds today." Serious notes had finally worked their way into his words.

"I've been helping you for weeks. Why are you suddenly bothering with asking?" He had her attention now.

"We're short-handed."

"Have Baldair and Raylynn finally run off together?" Vhalla couldn't stop herself. The more she'd come to know the guard, the more she'd learned who and what the easy targets were for jokes.

"One of those said parties is missing, though not who you'd expect. Ray is actually pulling her weight." Even Jax sounded impressed. "But Baldair is still gone, and Craig woke feeling unwell."

"Still gone?" The word had Vhalla wondering when was the last time she'd actually seen the golden-haired royal.

"Oh, you know him. Last I saw he was chasing Lady Imaj around the court. I'm sure they just ran off." Jax's laugh didn't have the strength it usually did. He quickly rolled off the bed and pushed the topic along before Vhalla could linger further. "So, help?"

"Yes, yes." Vhalla sat, realizing she was done with sleeping.

She knew she should go to the minister. They were so close to finishing the axe, and then it would be over. But it was one day, and Vhalla didn't want to ignore her friends when they were in need. So, after quickly dressing, her feet carried her to the grounds with Jax.

Erion was relieved the second Jax arrived with her, and Vhalla was quickly put to work. The difference two sets of hands made in managing the palace guard and their training was noticeable. Her practice with Daniel actually qualified Vhalla to help train young swordsmen and women in training, so Vhalla haunted the grounds until dusk.

She ate with the guard following, and lingered until the moon had crested the horizion. Sweaty and exhausted, she finally dragged her feet up the Tower. Her crystal work was taking a lot out of her, and she was on a mission for a hot bath and her bed.

The heavy thud of a book dropping drew Vhalla's attention into the dimly lit library. Footsteps moved across the floor, and Vhalla watched the flickering light of a single flame dance through over the tops of the books on the bookshelves. For once, she was thankful for his insomnia.

She needed to talk to Aldrik. She needed to speak with the prince about the crystal taint, about the princess, about making sure his father and the fragile peace that he'd bought with so much blood would last into spring, and about Aldrik's succession as the Emperor of Peace. It had nothing to do with her admission the night prior, she assured herself.

She rounded a bookcase, looking at the dark form scanning a high shelf for a manuscript. Vhalla leaned against the shelves watching him. His hair was limp and messed, his shoulders had an uncharacteristic sway. For a brief moment, she feared everything she'd heard about his old habits was really a lie, that he'd never stopped-or had returned to-his less than healthy ways of coping with a problem.

Aldrik sighed heavily, pulling a book and scanning it. Something was wrong, but Vhalla couldn't place her fingers on it.

"My prince," she whispered, not wanting to startle him too badly. It didn't work, and Aldrik nearly dropped the book he was holding. Vhalla realized too late that she had used their former term of endearment; she wondered if her presence or her words startled him more.

"What-when did you get here?" Dark circles blemished the area under his eyes.