Maiden's Wolf (In Deception's Shadow Book 3) (17 page)

“We know little
of Trensler. Only what the Crown Prince of the Phoenix could tell us,”
Councilor Tav said. “But from the little we know, we know he is evil. Had
Trensler been there, I doubt you would still be here talking to me.”

“It wouldn’t have
mattered if Trensler was there or not.” Silverblade said. “Even Lord Master
Trensler’s second in command, if that’s what he was, was more than enough to
deal with me. I would’ve died then. Sucked dry or enslaved by the acolytes had
it not been for Beatrice.”

Silverblade knew
that he had to tell the rest, but it would also draw the councilor’s attention
back to the human female.

“I think this is
where you explain to me why you are traveling with a human, and how you ended
up in your present predicament.” Councilor Tav looked Silverblade over,
studying him from the tips of his ears, all the way down to the claws on his
feet, and every inch of human-looking skin in between.

Until that exact
moment, Silverblade had been growing comfortable with his new form—Beatrice had
never made him feel inferior for being trapped between forms. But the arrogant
council member roused those earlier feelings of inadequacy. For the first time,
he was uncomfortable with others seeing him this way. He glanced towards the
other lupwyns. Did they see him as inferior now as well?

The logical side
of his mind knew he was still himself. It shouldn’t matter that he was
presently trapped between forms. Once his Larnkin healed and resumed his true
form, he’d be back to normal. Besides, it could’ve been so much worse. At least
he could still fight when needed, and Beatrice assured him he wasn’t hideously
ugly.

Then with a huff
at his own frivolous thoughts, for he was certainly old enough to know better
than to worry about physical appearances, he shoved aside what the arrogant
council member had implied. He was alive. That’s all that really mattered. And
as long as he drew breath, there was still a chance that he would destroy his
enemies. Ridding the world of the acolyte parasites would go a long way in
soothing his pride.

He didn’t dare
show any of these thoughts to the elder. This particular council member was old
and powerful and worse, even though he was a phoenix, he was the half-brother
to the lupwyn queen. They were known to share a close relationship. If the
Councilor took his suspicions to the lupwyn queen and the other ruling
councilors, Silverblade couldn’t trust he’d be able to protect Beatrice if they
decided she was in league with the acolytes.

At that exact
moment, Silverblade knew Beatrice’s future may very well rely upon his next
words being able to convince the councilor that she wasn’t evil and didn’t
serve the acolytes.

That might only
be the first hurdle to overcome. Councilor Tav was one of the greatest of the
healers, and it was entirely possible once he realized just how strong Beatrice
was, he would become her mentor.

Silverblade
winced on Beatrice’s behalf. This phoenix wasn’t one he’d have picked to become
her primary mentor. But if they both survived the coming battle with the
acolytes, there was a good chance the greatest of the Elemental healers would
be partnered with the most powerful of the youngsters.

 He would have to
select his words and arguments with care if he wished to remain in this
Councilor’s good graces for Beatrice’s sake.

But that would
all be a moot point if Councilor Tav tried to kill Beatrice outright, thinking
her a servant of the acolytes or some other dark master. Silverblade had seen
the flipside of her healing magic, and that was certainly on the darker
spectrum of power.

Tav turned his
gaze back toward Beatrice, and Silverblade felt when the Councilor lost his
patience and started hunting his own answers. The heat of rising fire magic
flowing out from the phoenix was warning enough.

Rushing into the
rest of the story, he said, “The human is a young, untrained healer. She and
her family have been hiding from the acolytes for years. During my scouting
mission, I studied Beatrice and her family. They are not the enemy. If you
don’t believe me, her family is known to the Stonemantle sisters. Beatrice is
friends with the younger two, and the oldest sister—Ashayna—trusts her. If you
don’t believe me, ask her. Surely the phoenix prince’s bondmate is trustworthy?”

“Yes,” Tav said
with a narrowing of his eyes. “I am here by the command of Prince Sorntar and
Ashayna.”

While his
expression was no longer quite so hostile, there was now an element of
calculation in his look and somehow, Silverblade found that more terrifying.
There’d also been a slight hesitation when he’d said the names of the prince
and his bondmate. He wondered what that was about.

“Then I am
certain Ashayna Stonemantle would be unhappy to hear if Beatrice was not shown
proper hospitality by the Elementals.”

“I was sent to
retrieve you.” He speared Silverblade with a look that would have had a
youngling pissing themselves in fear. “I received no orders regarding her. But
do tell me more about this healer.” Councilor Tav walked away from Silverblade
to study Beatrice at closer range. Silverblade didn’t know what spell the
Councilor weaved, or the intent behind it, but it was powerful and he imagined
it would be unpleasant to be on the receiving end.

Before he’d
consciously thought about it, he was pacing the Councilor, not so subtly trying
to get between the two healers. He made a pacifying gesture when flames leapt
to life between Tav’s fingers. “She is human, but a healer—young and untrained.
She only wished to help me. When I was being attacked by the acolytes, somehow
we linked, her power strengthening me even as the acolytes fed. It may have
been desperation on my Larnkin’s part, he may have been the one to establish
the link.” He knew that was a pure lie on his part. He only hoped the Councilor
could not sniff that out. To have Tav realize Beatrice’s own Larnkin had sensed
him over that great distance and reached out to save him would further raise
the Councilor’s suspicions.

Councilor Tav
barked out a humorous laugh, his feathered brows arching nearly halfway up his
forehead. The feathers of his crest fluffed slightly before flattening,
betraying some of the phoenix’s thoughts.

The Councilor
knew he was being lied to. Sweat began to trickle down Silverblade’s back.

The two males
talked above her head, so Beatrice let the conversation flow around her, her
attention and healer’s magic studying the phoenix with interest. In body,
Councilor Tav was human shaped, his facial features were similar to one of her
kind, but he was much taller—actually—he was taller than even the phoenix crown
prince had been, and his feathers were a paler blue. He had the same massive
wings which rose up from behind his shoulders, a tall crest, and a wide wedge
shaped tail. A simple skirt-like garment seemed to be the fashion of choice
among the phoenix. It left a lot of lovely bronze-toned skin exposed.

Glancing sideways
to Silverblade, she wondered what his phoenix form would look like.

But while she’d
been studying them, they’d taken what should have been a few tense heartbeats
and turned it into something full of hostility that promised bloodshed within
moments.

Sighing, she unfolded
her arms and then cleared her throat. “Oh for all that’s good, would you two
males stop posturing and strutting? We don’t have time for this foolishness.”

The councilor was
silent, clearly taken aback. Silverblade’s look said he had never seen him
speechless before.

“The acolytes
could even now be hunting us down,” Beatrice snapped. “Yes, I’m a healer. Yes,
I’m a human with power. And, yes, I know that worries you. But that does not
change the fact that when I sensed Silverblade being attacked by the acolytes,
I acted to save him. I did not know him personally, but I knew he was the
lupwyn scout who patrolled the forest near my grandmother’s hut. So even then I
considered him my neighbor, and neighbors help neighbors. I reached out to him
with my healer’s power and tried to strengthen him long enough that he could
get away from the acolytes.”

“A hedge witch
would stand no chance against these acolytes—not according to what others have
told me.”

“Hedge witch?”
She sniffed disdainfully, quickly losing any respect she might still have
possessed for the elder. “I make no claim to great magic or great knowledge.
Everything I know, I’ve learned through trial and error and instinct.”

“Still,” Tav said
with a deepening glower. “Nothing you did to heal Silverblade would have worked
against the acolytes. They would have just kept on draining him. No, I think it
much more likely they let him escape and you ‘rescued’ him only so you could
lead the acolytes to the rest of the magic wielders.”

 “Hmmm, you don’t
listen very well, Elder.”

She spotted when Silverblade
winced at her tone, but she didn’t care. Clearly the elder was intentionally
seeking to get some kind of a rise out of her.

When Tav would
have said something more, she cut him off. “Had you let me finish, I would have
told you that I tried to make Silverblade strong enough that he could escape
the acolytes, but it didn’t work. He was too weak and as you pointed out, it
didn’t matter how much power I poured into him, the acolytes just drained it
away. So my Larnkin killed the acolytes instead.”

“That’s not
possible…unless… No. You couldn’t be…” His eyes widened slightly. “No. Another
human couldn’t possibly be…”

*****

Silverblade
watched as Councilor Tav’s expression changed from assured certainty to
something far less so as he divided his attention between them. Seeing them in
a new light? Perhaps.

Overcoming
whatever doubt had assaulted him, the councilor continued, “You are correct,
young healer. We have wasted too much time. There is a great awakening power in
the world again and I have been instructed to bring you to them. They will be
the ones to decide if you serve the acolytes, not me.”

Silverblade’s
ears perked. If Tav had meant the other Elders of the Council, he would have
said as much.

Could that mean
he was referring to another, older group of magic wielders? He was just drawing
breath to question Tav’s words when Beatrice beat him to it.

“Oh, stop
speaking in riddles,” she said. “Do you mean the Twelve? If so, spit it out.
The acolytes could even now be getting closer, and I for one do not want them
to have another chance to enslave either Silverblade or myself.”

Beatrice marched
back to Silverblade’s side and stood with her hands fisted on her hips. The
elder’s expression had changed to disbelief, but Beatrice ignored it and rushed
onward with her rant.

“I’ve been
face-to-face with the acolytes and if this ‘great awakening power’ you speak of
just happens to be the Twelve Talismans and their mortal wielders Silverblade
told me about, I think you’re putting too much faith in them.”

Tav smiled
coldly. “Then perhaps you should tell the Falcon Staff that yourself. It was
that talisman which alerted us to Silverblade’s survival and ordered him
brought before the other members of the Twelve.”

Beatrice,
sounding unfazed by Tav’s declaration about the Twelve, continued. “Ah, so if
you have received orders from the Twelve, you must have seen them up close.
Silverblade tells me that the flesh-and-blood members of the Twelve are usually
marked by an intricate tattoo.”

Again Tav’s eyes
narrowed upon Silverblade. “What information did you share with her about the
Twelve?”

Silverblade drew
himself up straight. “Now you are implying I would—”

Beatrice cut him
off. “By chance, does this mark look anything like what the other members
wear?” She swiftly unlaced her outer vest and the cotton shirt underneath, then
she pulled it down enough to reveal the upper swell of her breast and the
tattoo-like symbol glimmering there.

She arched her
brow in question as the Councilor dipped into a grand sweeping bow. There he
stayed, kneeling before her. A heartbeat behind, the rest of those under Tav’s
command followed his example.

“Hmmm, I assume
that’s a yes?” Beatrice said as she rocked forward to look down at the
councilor, then she folded her hands primly in front of her and waited.

Even without any
words to confirm Silverblade’s earlier suspicions, the actions were enough to
tell him the mark was what he thought it was.

Equal parts
terror and relief thrilled through his soul. So he and Beatrice were both
members of the Twelve. His life, already complex, was looking to get that much
more complicated. But at least they weren’t unknowing slaves to the acolytes.

“While the deep
bow and the silence tells me lots,” Beatrice tapped the Elder on his shoulder
with a fair bit of force, “it doesn’t tell me what I want to know.”

When the
councilor looked up at her, she smiled. Although Silverblade would not call
that smile friendly. It was more a flash of fang, a bearing of teeth, an alpha
flexing her right to rule.

“Silverblade
mentioned a bit about the Twelve Talismans and that their wielders are born in
times of war. Well, the acolytes have certainly declared war. Am I to assume
Silverblade and I are both members of this Twelve?”

Councilor Tav
turned at the mention of Silverblade’s name. An unvoiced question entered his
expression, so Silverblade unlaced his own shirt so the others could see.

“I had both hoped
and feared that’s what this mark was. The alternative being that it was a mark
placed upon me by an acolyte.” Silverblade couldn’t hide his shudder.

Councilor Tav
huffed, and then came to his feet. “Well at least it’s good to see that not all
the wielders are children.”

“Children?”
Silverblade prompted with growing dread.

“Crown Prince
Sorntar and Ashayna Stonemantle are the leaders, but even if you added their
ages together it wouldn’t put them at half a century. Ashayna’s youngest sister
is also a member, so too is the stallion mage, Shadowdancer. At least he’s not
a child, but even then, I certainly wouldn’t have heaped this kind of
responsibility on him.”

Silverblade
didn’t know any of the other members personally, but it couldn’t be as bad as
the elder made it out to be. For a moment, he’d visualized himself having to
lead his pack and raise twelve god-blessed infants. But the individuals Tav
named were at least Beatrice’s age or older.

“I imagine the
third Stonemantle sister, the one taken by the Dead King, is also somehow
linked to the Twelve,” Tav added, almost as an afterthought.

“What?” Beatrice
interrupted. “Someone has kidnapped Lamarra?”

“The younger two
Stonemantle sisters had a run-in with the acolytes. Shadowdancer and Sorsha
were able to escape using their own magic, but tomb guards from the catacombs
below Grey Spires snatched Lamarra before the acolytes could get her. I can
only assume the Dead King is protecting her because she is one of power as
well.”

“Has no one
attempted to communicate with the Dead King?” Silverblade asked.

“Attempts are
impossible at the moment. The Dead King triggered the city’s defensive shields
and now no one can get in or out. The only communication possible is primitive
hand signs through the crystalline shield. No one seems to be hurt, but your
father and a few of the other council members are trapped inside.”

Then his father
wouldn’t know about Cymael. Silverblade’s heart twisted with fresh pain, but it
was for the best; he could tell his father himself.

“Who, by the
Light or the Dark, is the Dead King?” Beatrice asked, her sharp tone clearly
showing her patience was at an end.

“He is another
being who serves the Light,” the Councilor explained. “But to give you the full
history would take more time than we have at the moment. If you will both agree
to come with me, we will return to the other members of the Twelve, and they
will explain what they know to you.”

“Of course,”
Beatrice said. “But I need to know one thing. My grandmother, younger brother
and I were making our way further from the human-controlled lands when the
acolytes attacked Silverblade. I went back to aid him and told my family to go
on without me, that I’d travel faster than the wagon and would catch up. But
once the acolytes had our scent, Silverblade and I couldn’t follow my family or
we’d risk leading the acolytes right to them. I was hoping once we found other
Elementals, they might be able to help me find them. Please, if you know
anything, tell me.”

Councilor Tav
nodded his head. “We found the ones you speak of three days ago. Once we deemed
they were not servants of the acolytes, I ordered them onto the backs of the
swiftest santhyrians. They are even now deep in santhyrian territory, far from
the acolytes. If there is time, once you have met with the other members of the
Twelve, you will be reunited with your family. But know they are safe and well
looked after. And with the gods’ blessing, once we have defeated these
acolytes, they will be allowed to go anywhere they wish. But we have greater
concerns to attend to first.”

Silverblade could
not fault the Councilor’s reasoning. If they did not find a way to neutralize
the acolyte threat, no one would be safe.

“If you are
ready,” Tav said and glanced around, likely noting their lack of supplies, “I
would prefer to return you to the other members of the Twelve as soon as
possible.”

He nodded his
agreement and the elder again called one of the mighty Gates into being.
Silverblade’s mind was focused on other thoughts. He’d lived five and a half
centuries as a simple lupwyn scout and sometimes-pack leader, but now fate was
asking him to become something else entirely.

If he was honest,
he was not happy about that, but if it allowed him to defeat the acolytes, he
would embrace whatever personal sacrifices were required. He just hoped when it
was over he could return to his pack with Beatrice at his side.

He glanced at her
and held out his hand. Wordlessly, she took it and entwined her fingers with
his and then together they followed the others toward the Gate.

He tugged her
closer to his side and explained, “The Gate is a powerful working of magic. It
allows the users to travel great distances in a heartbeat. Some Elementals find
Gate travel unpleasant. The potent, barely contained magic needed to form a
Gate can be unsettling for both hosts and Larnkins. Newly awakened Larnkins are
especially sensitive. Normally one as young as you would not be allowed to
travel via a Gate, but the acolytes are far more fearsome than anything a Gate
might do to your Larnkin. Do not fear. I will be with you every step of the
way. And then, we will be among my pack.”