“What’s wrong?”
Yotimo’s question snapped Akna out of her shocked stupor. Shaking her surprise off, she silently cursed her own lack of self-control as she saw the old warrior glancing between her and the barbed wire wrapped around the unicorn’s foreleg. Bad enough that she’d been caught so completely off-guard by something she should have expected, but she’d let Yotimo see what it was that had rattled her.
That wouldn’t do. Yotimo was hardheaded and small-minded, but he was also a grizzled old warrior who’d seen dozens of battles before she’d been born, which made him no one’s fool. That she’d shown up here of her own initiative – worried that he’d slay or drive off the ponies before she could talk to them – without a plausible excuse had already made him suspicious. She couldn’t afford for him to question her motives even more.
“I just...I didn’t expect that pony to look so formidable,” she muttered, trying hard to make it sound like she was intimidated and attempting not to show it. “His shadow isn’t cast right, his horn looks like it’s been dipped in blood, and his foreleg...is that how ponies show off their strength? By wearing something so painful?”
Yotimo didn’t answer for a moment, a clear indication that he wasn’t sure if he believed her, but eventually his eyes turned back toward the pony leader. “I don’t know,” he admitted at last. “But like I said; these ponies have survived being in this forest for days, so if that is an emblem of strength, he came by it honestly.”
Akna nodded, adopting a pensive expression. “What about his mask? The one he used to slay Panuk?”
“It’s gone,” replied Yotimo. “Apparently, one of his companions” – he nodded at where four female ponies, one of them tied up for some reason, were conversing in the distance – “destroyed it after he tried to kill Toklo and hit them instead.”
This time Akna didn’t need to fake her concern. “He tried to kill Toklo? Even though he already cursed him?”
Yotimo nodded, and although the expression on his weathered old face didn’t change, Akna could tell that news weighed heavily on him...enough so that he was no longer wondering about her. Which means I need to keep him thinking about son, rather than me.
With that thought in mind, she glanced back in the direction they’d come from. “It occurs to me that I haven’t asked how he’s doing.”
The faintest trace of surprise could be seen in Yotimo’s eyes then, a far cry from how openly she’d worn her own a few moments ago. “He’s...he’ll be fine. We’ll give the pony what he wants, get his curses removed, and then I’ll bring him home.”
“When you do, try not to hold what happened here against him,” cautioned Akna. “The way I heard it, he fought bravely before he was captured, and it was his last stand that allowed the others to escape. Not to mention he survived being in captivity. That’s its own form of strength.”
Yotimo’s eyes flickered back toward where they’d left his son and his warriors, but after a moment he shook his head. “Right now we need to focus on the ponies. I’ll deal with Toklo after that.”
Hoping that she’d done enough to take his mind off his suspicions toward her, Akna nodded. “I agree. Which is why I’m going to try and convince that pony to remove your son’s curses now.”
She strode forward then, but had only taken a single step when Yotimo grabbed her arm. “What are you talking about? I already made a deal with that pony. He’ll remove Toklo’s curses-”
“After he finds this ‘shrine’ he’s looking for, I know,” she shot back, giving him an irritated glare as she wrenched her arm free of his grasp. “Silla told me. But that’s assuming we can count on that pony to keep his word. And even if he is honorable, we still have to find that place, and he still needs to survive until we do, and that’s if there’s nothing dangerous there. It’s better if we can convince him to remove Toklo’s curses now.”
Yotimo’s brows furrowed. “And how exactly do you plan on doing that?”
“By offering him a more valuable hostage.”
Yotimo immediately knew who she meant, and this time he didn’t bother grabbing her arm, instead moving to stand in front of her. “No! You are not taking those curses in Toklo’s place!”
Smiling inwardly now that the old warrior was dancing to her tune, Akna fixed him with a stern look. “That pony’s curse – one of them, at least – is keeping your son from being eaten if he dies. That’s an offense both to the spirits and to our way of life. As our tribe’s shaman, it’s my duty to place myself between my people and the threat that pony represents!”
Yotimo glowered at her. “Not if that means potentially losing our only shaman!”
“My life won’t be in danger,” countered Akna. “Only my ability to be reborn after I die. Even if I bear the pony’s curse for life, I’ll still be able to have a daughter of my own and pass on the role of shaman to her.”
Her reasoning was solid enough that Akna could see the frustration on Yotimo’s face now, despite how well he hid it, and she had to fight down the urge to laugh. It must have sounded so noble to him, the shaman putting her spirit in jeopardy for the good of the tribe. If only he knew.
Silla’s having told her that the ponies wanted to find the Shrine of the Starless Sky had been what had caused her to rush out there, rather than any desire to avenge Panuk or safeguard Toklo’s ability to be devoured when he died. Instead, she’d been intent on capturing the ponies and torturing them for information; how did they know about the Shrine, and what were their intentions if they found it?
That one of the ponies was apparently a priest of the Night Mare, to whom the Shrine was dedicated, hadn’t crossed her mind.
But now that she’d spotted the Night Mare’s holy symbol, wrapped around the hoof of the pony who was apparently the leader of the group, everything was clear.
This was the opportunity she’d been, quite literally, praying for.
“I don’t like this,” growled Yotimo softly, “and neither will any of my warriors.”
But Akna had expected him to say that. “They didn’t like it when you made a deal with the ponies to rescue Toklo,” she countered easily. “Did that stop you?”
There was nothing Yotimo could say to that, and a moment later he stepped back, moving out of her way.
It was all Akna could do not to smirk as she stepped past him, heading back toward where the ponies were.
“If things go wrong and this comes down to a fight-”
“It won’t,” dismissed Akna, frowning a little. Was he really going to fret so much now that their course of action had been decided upon?
“If it does,” he repeated, his voice insistent, “then I’ve given orders for everyone here to take a defensive posture and try to drag out the battle for as long as possible. According to Toklo, something’s wrong with that unicorn’s magic, and he can’t recharge it. The more he uses now, the weaker he’ll be later.”
Akna frowned at that, but other than giving him a nod didn’t reply. If something was preventing that unicorn from restoring his magic, was that why he was looking for the Shrine? Because he had offended the Night Mare somehow and was on a quest to regain her favor? If so, that might limit his usefulness to her...but he was still better than nothing.
It took only a few seconds of walking to bring them back to where the ponies were, the unicorn conferring quietly with the pegasus as the winter wolf stuck close to them, her posture one of readiness. All three looked up at her as she approached them, but Akna only had eyes for the stallion, fighting down the urge to grin as she glanced at the barbed wire around his hoof again.
Finally...it was finally happening...
“Okay...I think I understand.”
“Don’t attempt to use it before you’ve had a chance to test it properly,” cautioned Lex. “Even if it’s a simple spell, your control is still less than perfect.”
“Geez, you don’t have to put it like that,” huffed Thermal Draft. “It’s just an increase in speed, it’s not like I’ll be fooling around with another fireball.”
“Be that as it may, I want you to exercise caution,” repeated Lex. “The process by which you construct micro-rituals is prone to errors if you don’t-”
“Construct each spell with the utmost precision, I know,” sighed the pegasus. “I’ll be sure to practice the spell, okay? Just once we’re somewhere safer.”
Frowning, Lex nevertheless nodded, watching as Thermal Draft looked uneasily at the adlets, before glancing over at where Mystaria and the others had dragged Shadow Star. She looked at them for only a moment before glancing back at where the elder adlet’s polar bear was dozing by the remorhaz’s corpse, studying the sleeping bear for just a moment before turning her eyes to Solvei, as if making sure the winter wolf was still there. When Solvei tilted her head inquisitively at the pegasus, Thermal Draft murmured an apology before looking down instead.
Looking everywhere except back at him, in other words.
She’d been fidgeting like that ever since he’d broached the topic of why she’d initiated their sexual encounter several days ago, back in the village.
As bad as Lex was at reading people, it had been clear even to him that the question had left her extremely flustered. She’d hemmed and hawed for several moments, a range of expressions crossing her face, none of which he’d been able to identify, before she’d abruptly regained control of herself, saying that she’d prefer to talk about that when they had some privacy.
The excuse had brought a scowl to Lex’s face, but before he’d been able to point out that there was little chance of that happening in the immediate future, she’d quickly suggested that he teach her more spells instead, since they might need them if the newly-arrived female adlet insisted on picking a fight. And although Lex had wanted to stick with his original topic of choice – if only so that he’d have something else to occupy his thoughts – her reasoning had been too cogent to dismiss. Even if they didn’t fight the newcomer, there were likely to be more battles in the near future, and he’d already missed several days’ worth of instructing her in new spells.
So, reluctantly, Lex had let the mystery of why Thermal Draft had slept with him lie, instead teaching her a spell that would enhance her flight speed for a short duration. Now that she had that down, the next one he had in mind was-
Master, came Solvei’s telepathic voice, those adlets are coming back.
Glancing at the winter wolf, Lex followed Solvei’s gaze toward the forest, with Thermal Draft doing the same when she saw where his attention was directed.
A few moments later, the elder adlet – Yotimo, Toklo’s father with whom he’d cut a deal – and his female companion emerged from the gloom, walking directly toward them.
When they got closer, Solvei moved to stand in front of them, growling softly as she glared at the two. “What do you want?”
The female adlet glanced at her only for a moment before looking Lex over, her gaze finally settling on his. “My name is Akna,” she announced at last. “I’m the shaman for our tribe. I wish to negotiate with you for Toklo’s freedom.”
Solvei snorted as Lex telepathically fed her his response. “My master has already made a deal with your leader. His son’s curses will be lifted when my master and his entourage reach the Shrine of the Starless Sky, and not before.”
“Yotimo is not my leader,” corrected Akna with a frown, keeping her eyes on Lex’s. “As the senior shaman for our people, I answer only to our council of elders. And as one who speaks with the spirits and learns from their wisdom, I believe that a more favorable bargain can be reached, for all of us.”
“Great, another Prevarius,” muttered Thermal Draft.
The comparison made Lex grimace, reminding him of the medley of negativity that he was trying not to concentrate on. Instead, he made himself focus on what he wanted Solvei to say, and a moment later the winter wolf parroted his response. “Speak your piece and be done with it.”
For the briefest instant, Akna’s eyes darted toward where Yotimo was standing slightly behind her. “I’d prefer to do that in private, if you don’t mind.”
The request made Yotimo narrow his eyes as he looked at the shaman. “Akna, what are you doing?”
“What I said I would,” she replied easily. “Relax. I know what I’m doing.”
“You didn’t say anything about speaking with him alone,” shot back the elder adlet. “If he attacks you-”
“My master wouldn’t do that!” snarled Solvei, hackles rising. “Not unless she attacked first!”
“Which won’t happen,” answered Akna, crossing her arms under her chest. “I’m only interested in talking.”
“You were ranting about wanting revenge for Panuk just a minute ago.” Thermal Draft made no effort to be polite, giving the adlet a frown. “How do we know this isn’t an attempt to separate Lex from the rest of us so you can attack him when he’s alone?”
Akna shrugged. “Do you want me to swear an oath about my peaceful intentions?”
“Would you feel bound by it if you did?” sneered Solvei, this time without any prompting from Lex.
For a moment Akna’s lip curled, but she didn’t reply to the winter wolf’s taunt, instead keeping her eyes on Lex. “One way or another, this all comes down to trust. Your deal with Yotimo required you to trust him to lead you to the shrine you’re looking for, rather than a trap. He’s trusting you to release his son once you get what you want. Can you really not trust me enough to speak with me alone for a few minutes?”
“What do you want to say to him in private that you can’t-”
Thermal Draft’s question died on her lips as Lex held out a hoof, silencing her. A moment later he sent instructions to Solvei, and despite the sudden sense of trepidation he registered from her, she relayed his message faithfully. “My master will agree to your request.”
“Lex,” whined Thermal Draft. But he wasn’t listening, instead, calling upon the reserve of magic in his circlet, just as he had the last few days whenever he’d cast his spell to create a livable shelter. The dome of force it created wasn’t much as far as privacy went – it only shielded those inside of it from sight, not muffling any sounded that emanated from within – but it would have to be enough.
Akna and Yotimo both stiffened as the silvery dome appeared, but Lex ignored them both as he strode inside, letting Solvei deliver his instructions for him. “My master will speak with you inside here. Drafty, you should go tell the others what’s happening, just to be safe. As for you,” she spat, looking at Yotimo, “go tell the rest of your kind to keep their distance, and keep yours too for that matter.”
But Yotimo held his ground, even as Thermal Draft reluctantly flew back. “I am not leaving,” the old adlet protested. “If Akna is going in there, then I’m staying right here.”
“I will stay here,” shot back Solvei, baring her teeth, “to make sure that no one disturbs Master and that so-called shaman of yours until they’re done. You will do as you’re told, or else.”
Yotimo firmed up his stance then, his features tightening as he glared right back at Solvei. But before he could otherwise react, Akna put a hand on his shoulder. “I have a suggestion. I’ll put my own guardian out here, alongside the winter wolf, while Yotimo falls back.” She glanced between the featureless surface of the dome, before looking back at Solvei. “I trust your master has no problem with that?”
Solvei frowned, but this time it was suspicion that Lex registered from her. “What guardian?”
In answer, Akna held a hand out beside her, eyes closing as she took a deep breath. Immediately, the sensation of magic registered across Lex’s senses, and he saw the snow around Akna suddenly whip around, caught in a cold wind. The change in the weather couldn’t reach him inside the dome, but he still noticed that the nearby trees weren’t moving; whatever the adlet shaman was doing was localized to directly around her.
But that was only the case for a moment, as the windswept snow curled around itself, pulling in more of the white powder from the ground nearby. Held aloft, the snow clumped together rather than being scattered by the breeze, twisting in mid-air as though an invisible pony was attempting to sculpt a snowball. Nor did it stop there, as more and more of the sleet around the adlet shaman – who continued to hold her position, eyes closed and hand out – was picked up by the wind.
A moment later the snow began to shape itself into a creature.
It was like watching an ice sculpture melt in reverse. Rather than starting at its feet and forming upward, the swirling snow formed a thin frame of the entire body, clinging to itself as it took the loose form of a humanoid, with a spindly torso from which two arms and two legs sprouted, joined by a head a moment later. Then more snow rushed in, filling the nascent creature out.
Even as Lex watched, the snow piled together, rushing in to give what had moments ago been a wire-thin frame form and definition. Already, the nearby snowdrifts were depleting, pulled into the nascent creature and seemingly becoming part of its mass, adhering to the greater collective of frozen water even as the snow solidified more, turning into solid ice. In moments, the creature had become as thick around as a pony, and stood twice as tall as Akna.
And it continued to grow.
The entire process lasted only a few more seconds, but when it was over, there was a massive creature of pure ice towering over the adlet shaman. Fully three times her height, it was easily thicker than three ponies standing together. It had no discernable features, lacking anything that resembled a face on its round lump of a head nor any sort of discernable anatomy beyond its humanoid shape. But what it lacked in fine details it more than made up for in mass, and as the ice monster turned toward Akna, Lex could feel its steps reverberating through the ground.
I knew it! yelped Solvei, growing to her full height in alarm. This is a trap! Master, let me-
Stand down, Solvei, ordered Lex. Wait and see what she does next.
She didn’t argue, but the anxiety coming from her was quite clear as Akna beckoned for the ice creature to lean down. It obeyed wordlessly, kneeling down and lowering its head toward her. Looking up at it, Akna’s lips moved for just a moment before she stepped back, nodding. “I’ve ordered this ice spirit to stand watch outside of our meeting place,” she explained, looking at Yotimo. “If something happens, it will move to protect me. Is that enough to quell your fears?”
Letting out a slow breath, Yotimo glanced at the ice creature, then at Akna, then at Solvei, before finally looking at the dome. Although Lex knew he couldn’t see through it, the elder adlet’s eyes seemed almost to find his before he nodded at last, and then turned and went back to his warriors, once again gawking at the spectacle.
“My master says for you to enter the area of his spell,” relayed Solvei under his mental prompting, still staring at the ice creature the shaman had conjured up. “But speak with care. It keeps out prying eyes, but your words can still be heard outside of it if you’re loud.”
“Understood,” nodded Akna, before striding into the dome.
And then, at last, they were alone.
“The ice elemental I summoned won’t last very long, and I suspect that Yotimo will come running if he sees it crumble before I come back, so I’ll get right to the point,” began Akna abruptly. “We need Yotimo and his warriors to leave, and the only way that’s going to happen is if you remove those curses from his son.”
“I couldn’t care less whether the rest of your kind stay or go,” shot back Lex. “Any benefit that’s gained from their departing is negated by not having them to deter and fight this forest’s monsters for us, so what does it matter if they leave or not?”
“It matters,” insisted Akna, “because I can’t lead you to the Night Mare’s shrine if they’re here!”
Lex’s eyes narrowed. That she’d mentioned the Night Mare by name was unexpected, but not completely surprising; that the Shrine of the Starless Sky was dedicated to the Night Mare had been mentioned in front of Toklo several times, so it wasn’t impossible that she had heard about it when talking to Yotimo just now. But that she knew its location ran counter to everything Lex had expected. “You know where it is?”
A smile slid across Akna’s lips then. “I’ve been there before.”
Intrigued despite himself, Lex raised a brow. “For what purpose?”
Her answer took him completely by surprise.
“It’s where I pledged myself to the goddess, in return for which she allowed me to use Headhunter, one of her Umbral Regalia.”