Omens In Ashes

I love this land. Elyna stretched out her bare legs in the dry rushes of grass. The earth was cracked beneath her feet. When she sat up straight, she could pick out the homes of the tribe dipped against a golden horizon. Birds fluttered overhead, skimming the skyline. The grass twitched with small insects, seeds and fresh shoots. Her skin was dusky with tan, her skin bared to the light or wrapped in leather and cloth.

Elyna knew that a season among Emanys had changed her, the people even more than the land. She knew that here she was happy, content with the demands upon her. There was a role for her, one suited to her own beliefs and desires. There was more freedom amongst the treachery of the grasslands than she had experienced throughout her whole life. She ran her fingertips across the dirt. Elyna suspected that Kyanite knew it too. The Onkarl seemed to recognise the wildness that found peace with her. The reluctance to leave…

The familiar sound of wings made her smile. Scanning the sky was such an automatic response that the innate wrongness was initially lost upon her. Elyna was on her feet, watching the Volarean climb on the sparse thermals deep within Emanys.

There was a Volarean in Emanys.

Was it the sudden realisation that made the air electric or could Elyna be so in tune with the lands themselves that the wind seemed to whisper, intruder. Even as the familiar creature gave a painful howl, time did not seem to catch up to the events that followed. Spiralling, falling, rider came away from beast and what appeared a split second before they hit the ground, the winged creature had turned and padded its keeper’s impact with the earth, sacrificing the use of its wings in the process. There was an audible snap and Emily knew the Volareon’s right wing was broken.

Kyanite looked up from his post, jolted like a spider by the weight of a fly on its web. He felt the creature's energy go through the earth like a pulse of lightning and pulled himself up onto his horse, bareback and wild. He was followed by the handful of men from the Blackwater tribe, who set out after him with spears and arrows at hand. They were not the first to the scene, already controlled by a number of warriors Kyanite had warned away from their turf twice the previous season. A trio of rogues, opportunists rounding up stray cattle that had fallen behind once the city had moved on. With young children at foot, the Onkarl had been reluctant to follow or let any strangers near.

It's ours! The lead warrior warned at a distance, dagger in hand.

The three stood a few metres from the strange creature, reluctant to get too close as it hissed and snarled at them, fangs bared.

The horses skidded to a halt, shaking their heads nervously as they backed up. Kyanite remained on his mare, the height and speed of the animal advantageous. His silence and calmness seemed to anger the warrior, who warned him again, get back! “We shot it down and we claim it!”

The Volarean and Rider circled and Elyna was already on her feet. The twins safe in the village, she didn’t think about the consequences as her heart seemed to leap into her throat. With her fingers in the corner of her mouth the Skyrider whistled to the creature, long, sharp and low, the whistle all Skyriders learnt and each Volarean knew. It was enough to see the creature twist in the air, pausing. It was enough to see it circle again, twisting towards the ground with its rider leant forward over the wings. Elyna knew that she had been spotted, there was a stillness in the rider, a pause in the beating wings as the Volarean moved to climb, winging towards where she stood beyond the camp and the boundaries of magic which kept the Ontari safe.

Elyna ran forward, only to stumble as the Volarean suddenly howled and pitched. The scream that carried across the grass left her hoarse as she scrambled back to her feet. The black gelding had fallen into step beside her and she swung up onto his back, following the Ontari that tracked through the grass like water through a riverbed.

All the other horses stopped, the gelding losing pace as he joined them. He let out an uncertain whinny as Elyna half-fell from his back. Her gaze fixed on the beast before her, she was blind to anything else.

‘Emily?!’ It was a shout as she moved forward, ‘Em are you hurt?! Emily!!!’

The Volarean glanced in her direction, ears flattening for a moment with interest before shifting its weight.

The three armed men moved to defend their prize, forcing her to slow her steps. Elyna took stock, she wore only leather, none that would barely constitute armour. She had no weapon, but she could sense Kyanite and his mounted men behind her.

Elyna stood in the centre, desperately scanning for a sign of her friend, please don’t be dead, she thought.

‘Don’t get too close to his legs,’ she called back to Kyanite, pulling together the words and signs of Ontari she had been learning. ‘Volarean kick will kill more painfully than horse…and they’re mean when they’re injured.’ Elyna looked back at Kyanite then, wondering if he saw the desperation in her features.

Please be alive.

‘Ely?’ There was a cracked voice from beneath the Volarean and Elyna felt the tears track down her face.

‘Em?’ She turned back, bare feet shifting in the dirt. ‘Em?’ She half-knelt in an attempt to see her friend. Her knee pressed into the dust as she shivered, hardly daring to breathe her friend's name aloud. ‘Em,’ she choked, ‘are you okay?’

Elyna looked and sounded Ontari enough to fool the strangers into believing she had meant disrespect as she crossed the invisible boundary to their claim. The leader moved into action and found a swift death at the feet of his men, Kyanite’s spear pinning him to the earth through the root of his neck. The remaining pair scarcely had time to blink before they were turned to flee, shadowed by the Blackwater men. Kyanite retrieved his spear as his mount thundered by, running the poachers down to a good fifty metres away where they chose to submit. Had they been nearer the city, Kyanite would have permitted them to live, but he had too much to lose out here to welcome revenge attacks.

There was a distant groan as a second and third man lost their lives. Rather than return, Kyanite instructed his kin to continue on and take apart the men’s gers and search their camp for resources. The Onkarl sat atop his horse somewhere in between the fallen Volareon and his tribesmen, watching and waiting.

Emily crawled up onto her knees and fell into her friend's embrace, unable to trust her eyes. Had she died? Was this some kind of cruel dream? “I’ve been searching for so long,” Emily sobbed. She alone had continued the hunt when it seemed all backup had failed. “You’re alive!”


Kyanite’s curiosity soon got the better of him and he dismounted before moving to join Elyna where the beast had fallen. It pained him to see the animal grounded. There were many winged beasts that stalked the skies of Emanys, but nothing quite like this. The man kept his distance, Elyna’s warning still fresh in his mind. He had caught the end of an exchange between the two, but his limited knowledge of common made most of what they had said difficult to decipher. What was evident, however, was that the pair knew each other. What did it mean, Kyanite wondered. Would Elyna’s king come for her? Would this stranger take her away?

His hand tightened about the spear, eyes fixed on the stranger. Kyanite looked confused, angered even—an emotion he seldom portrayed or let get the better of him. The man in that moment seemed at war with his thoughts, weighing them. He was not ready to lose her, that much he knew. What dangers would this skyrider present that he must be ready to maneuver.

To camp! He signed, resolute in his decision to separate the pair before any plans could be formed or shared.

He signalled one of the riders to watch Emily and help her with her mount before turning to Elyna. Home he signed in silence, making the gesture with his hand against his chest as if in secret. Kyanite stepped over the body of the man he had put to death, then asked his kin to see that they were dragged far from camp. “Get her water,” he told them, “and take her to camp once the sky-creature is tended to and secured.”

Death was dealt swiftly, in a way that Elyna found less shocking than she had a season ago. She was shivering, pulled taut with threads of tension until the marauders we chased off and she could scramble towards her friend.

It was Emily’s outpouring of emotion that broke Elyna. Uncertain if she was laughing or crying, she was forced to accept that she must be both. She knelt, forehead to forehead with her greatest friend. Emily always seemed more together, less emotionally fragmented than her noble counterpart. She had always been a presence of solidity in a dangerous world. It was testament to the Skyrider’s journey and increasingly desperate search for her friend that her emotions caught the better of her.

‘I’m alive,’ Elyna promised her friend, pulling back to study her features. She tucked a strand of pale hair behind Emily’s ear, ‘I’ve been safe here…’ the sound of hoof beats had her pause, glancing up at the Onkarl she felt her heart skip a nervous beat. She didn’t like his expression, not the look of anger that crossed his features and was hard to explain.

‘Em,’ Elyna held her friends shoulders tightly, pulling the Skyrider to attention, ‘treat the Ontari with honour, and they will show you kindness,’ she imparted hurriedly. Emily stared at her before nodding. The pair shifting, standing unsteadily as Kyanite gave his orders. Elyna’s hand had dropped to grip her friends, she squeezed and shared a look with the girl who had shared most of her life.

Friend, Family, Sister, Mine - Elyna signed to Kyanite, wracking her brains for any word or symbol that could accurately impart just how important the petite blonde was to her. But the Onkarl had been generous in saving Emily and Elyna remained unwilling to push her luck, even if she felt safe among the Ontari. She squeezed Emily’s hand again before crossing to the gelding, a Renmere horse more used Volarean, it had been happier to venture forth.

Swinging up, Elyna followed Kyanite, not without twisting in her saddle as Emily dusted herself off and turned back to the Volarean, hands on hips. Ely grimaced.

‘It will take a long time,’ she called to Kyan, pointing back to the fallen creature. Guiding her horse without saddle or reins she encouraged it closer to the Onkarls mount and offered him a rueful smile. ‘Volarean,’ she named it in common before switching to the combined words and gestures used by the Ontari, ‘high strung, will not like to be left alone,’ she shook her head a little then, ‘Trekka will not want in camp,’ Elyna grimaced and looked back with a long suffering sigh. Horses and Volarean did not mix well.

Kyanite’s brow was heavy most of the day, a thunder cloud following him wherever he went. He did not speak to Elyna but looked at her as if she had betrayed him somehow. Even a subtle touch from his wife in the sanctity of their ger did not lighten his mood. What letters had gone back and forth to the shore, unbeknown to him, he wondered. Just one of those creatures could have decimated their camp, had its rider chosen to attack rather than scout. What if more came? How could he make his kin ready?

After they had eaten that evening with the rest of the tribe, one of the men that had been keeping an eye on Emily signaled something to the Onkarl. He looked up from his makeshift plate and nodded. “With me.” He said.

Emily looked nervously between the pair before her eyes found Elyna. No one had been unkind to her, but the language and people were so alien, that she could not help but feel ill at ease. Two of them had gone through her things and though she had nothing to hide, the intrusion was unnerving. Her bag was returned to her but she had been stripped of her weapons and what little she wore in the way of armor.

She followed the small family back to the ger, but before either of them could enter, Kyanite pointed Elyna to a much smaller ger that had gone up during the day. [b]For you[/b] he signed, “and your sister,” he added. If they did mean to deceive him, Kyanite had decided he would not put his family in harm's way. An attack in close quarters while they slept was now off the cards. He stared at her for a moment and then ducked into his own ger.

There was little chance to speak to Emily before the evening meal. Mostly, as Elyna had suspected, because it took a large portion of the day for Emily to settle her mount, Ridian. As much as Elyna loved to fly, Volarean’s were a temperamental pain in the behind. Yet even after Emily made her weary way to camp, Elyna found herself partially separated from her friend. She found herself watching the Onkarl for his subtle motions and orders.

The look he returned, confused her. Was he angry? Why? Elyna stood as the day came to a close, moving towards Kyanite only to be stopped by his gesture. She turned to look at the ger in surprise, but by the time she could swing back to the man, he had vanished within his tent.

Elyna let out the breath she had been holding. Luke was tucked into a wrap, secured around her body. Elsie was cradled in her arms, mouth open as she slept deep and dreamless.

‘The uh…’ Elyna turned and smiled at Emily, ‘the tent is ours,’ she gestured to the ger. ‘Come,’ she encouraged her friend. With a backward look at the Onkarl’s home this time, Elyna led the way.

A small pile of furs had been left, along with the small collection of belongings she had obtained to care for the twins. Elyna could appreciate Emily’s nerves as she watched her friend peering beyond the tent flap.

‘You’re safe,’ Ely knelt to lay first one babe, then the other down in the firs. ‘We’re safe,’ she assured her friend again.

‘Ely…’ Em turned but her gaze fell on the babies. She choked then, hand over her mouth to hush the sound. ‘Oh Ely, your babies…’ she whispered.

‘Luke and Elsie,’ Elyna knelt beside her, unable to help the proud smile that dominated her sun touched features. ‘They’re thriving here,’ she agreed, ‘I was so frightened Emily…I am so lucky to have them.’

‘I have to get you back to Malcolm, all of you. He must be worried sick by now.’

‘Em…it was Malcolm who sent me here,’ Elyna’s smile vanished. She stared at the babes in their bed ‘He arranged with Yvan to remove me.’

‘Ely no,’ Emily reached out to wrap a hand around her friends’ arm, ‘he sent me to find you.’

‘Did he?’ Elyna looked up then and Emily couldn’t help but think that the light in her gaze felt dimmed. Quieter. ‘Did he send you any help? Any reinforcements? Or did he send a gesture…in the expectation and hope that you would fail?’

‘Ely…’ Emily warned.

‘Jared rode with us to the border Em. If Malcolm was looking for me, he knew where I was…’

‘You’re not…you’re not coming home?’

Elyna rubbed her hand across her brow, ‘I am…’ she replied. ‘I will…’

‘I don’t understand. If you truly believe that Malcolm tried remove you, which is madness by the way, why would you go home?’

‘So he can tell me to my face,’ Elyna met her friend's gaze then. Features firm in their determination, her voice low and fierce. ‘If he wants me dead, then he can do it himself.’

“He did not…” Emily paused mid thought. “There was a look in his eye… something in his tone. I only saw him in passing, but he was desperate, Elyna. He’s never striked me as a good actor. I just hope you’re wrong and… without any malice intended… I know you are.”

Emily looked down at the twins cuddled together in their wraps on the furs. She reached out to stroke Luke’s head, but thought better of it. Enough people had warned her in her lifetime never to wake a sleeping child. “They are perfect,” she whispered, still struggling to comprehend that her friend had two.

The skyrider reached out and took Elyna’s hand. “I’m just so thankful you’re alive… alive and well.” She leaned into the woman. Emily couldn’t help but stare at the door. A curtain of leather hung between them and what she perceived as very real danger.

“They took my weapons… Ridian may never fly again… How are we going to get home, El? The way that man looks at you. Elyna he’s terrifying… He killed those men without hesitation when they threatened you.” She swallowed. “Do you think they will just let us walk free? It’s a hell of a journey with Luke and Elsie being so young. Do we wait for the reinforcements Mal—the king promised?”

The sound of dry grass being crushed underfoot made Emily fall silent. Cora announced herself in the way Ontari did before following River through the opening to the ger. She set down some more blankets and a pile of clothes for the stranger. The evenings had been growing particularly cold the nearer they got to the end of Harvest.

Welcome she waved to Emily before retreating from the dome. “Rest,” Cora said. “Tomorrow we work.” I take River to Ari. Cora smiled. “He will be happy come dawn.” She made the sign for Onkarl. “We miss you.”

River stumbled after Cora and played with the leather of the door for a time before he was swept up into his mother’s arms. Emily listened as the woman’s footfalls grew distant before she looked at Elyna. “What did she say? How did you learn so quickly? Maybe you should teach me enough to save myself.”

Whatever misgivings Elyna had about her husband, she kept them to herself as Emily took her hand. She pulled her friend close, wrapping an arm around her waist and offering silent comfort. There was little time to answer her friend’s concerns as Cora made her entrance. Elyna thanked the woman in silence, nodding slowly.

‘Rest easy,’ She told the tall woman. Leaning forward she wriggled her fingers at River when he ventured too close. The little boy giggled, tucking his arms under his stomach as he tottered away and back to the door of the ger.

With Cora departed, Elyna knelt up taking the time to lace the leather flap of the door and secure it. It was something that had made her feel more comfortable when she’d first arrived after all. Task finished in deft, practiced motions, Elyna returned to the pile of furs and lay down, she wrapped an arm over her children and watched Emily.

‘Sleep,’ she urged her friend, ‘sleep and I will explain everything tomorrow and show you some of the signals the Ontari use. ‘Sleep because you’ve had a long journey, and a fall from the sky…you must be exhausted, hungry, and bruised…I swear it Emily, I have experienced nothing but kindness from these people.’

Before the first fingers of light touched the horizon, Elyna blinked awake to see Emily staring across at her. With a groan, she stretched out her arms and sat up. Approaching Frost the morning air was chilly enough to raise the flesh on her arms. She pulled one of the skins over her shoulders, blinking as Emily copied her actions. It was clear that the Skyrider had found little respite and rest.

Elyna drew a breath, where best to start?

‘Friend,’ Elyna signed the word as she spoke it in common. Emily nodded, repeating the action back. ‘Greetings,’ Elyna added after a moment before wrinkling her nose, ‘I’m sorry,’ she admitted, ‘I’ll teach you everything I know, I just don’t know where to start…’

The wind lifted the sides of the ger, causing them to flap against the pegs that held them flush to the earth. ‘Jared and Yvan bought me and the children to the fjord that borders the grasslands. Along with a Sister from Aramane whose magic had kept the babies alive, they were born early so they were small. Too small…’ Elyna drew a breath then, ‘Jared and Malcolm are as close as you and I have ever been, perhaps closer. Jared wouldn’t betray Malcolm, anymore than you could ever betray me. Whatever actions Warrick took, they were with Malcolm’s blessing.’ There was a knot in her chest, one that never faded and grew as she spoke of the past.

She swallowed the constriction in her throat and forced herself to continue, ‘when we crossed into the Emanys…I…the Sister was killed, it was my fault for provoking Yvan I…’ Elyna closed her eyes. ‘I thought the babies wouldn’t last…but there’s some magic here and it sustained them. They’re alive because of this land,’ she forced herself to look up then, reaching out to smooth her fingertips over the soft fur that the children slept upon.

‘Resources are rare here, food, water, clothing, everything has a cost in time to find and create. The Ontari have fed me and my children, clothed us, sheltered us and kept us safe from the dangers that lie beyond the boundary of the camp. Extra members of a tribe are a burden, and one they didn’t have to accept.’ She ran her fingers over her forehead, ‘Yvan they traded, I don’t know where he is…’

Emily watched her in silence, piecing together what little she’d ever heard of the Ontari with what Elyna was telling her.

‘They have their customs, the man he is their Onkarl, leader of this tribe. Cora, his partner, visited us last night. I don’t…I don’t believe that we can simply walk away from here. But there is a custom that outsiders might stay with a tribe for a year before being permitted to leave. If I must wait out my year, then I must. By my understanding…for the time I am here, I am as much a member of their tribe as an outsider can be…’ Elyna shook her head then, ‘there’s another woman here, from Aramane originally, she speaks Common. She’d helped me to learn.’

Beyond the leather of the tent, the gentle noises of the stirring Ontari started and Elyna moved to unfasten the laces once more. The ground was covered in the first touch of pale frost, her breath turned to mist as she collected the children and secured them in their wrappings. Standing outside the tent, she stretched again and turned to Emily once more, ‘there is work to do…’ she extended her hand to her friend, ‘I made it clear how important you are to me…please don’t be afraid of these people. Respect them, and they will show you kindness.’

Cora sat astride her husband. She could not remember the last time they had shared a night alone and endeavoured to make the most of the occasion. She ruled him in the only way an Ontari woman could a man, enslaving him to desire. She woke him frequently, staking her claim to his flesh anew until they were both spent. The Orna had made her intentions clear and the Onkarl had offered little in the way of challenge. Come Bloom they would be blessed again if she had her way. “In darkness we sow,” she whispered and leaned down to press her temple to Kyanite’s brow.

Her hands found tension in his shoulders and she sat up to pin him with a look. “Something still troubles you.” Is it Elyna?

The man signed yes.

“She is not our blood,” Cora said.

Her blood would strengthen the tribe.

Cora watched the man’s hands as he communicated in silence. She leaned down and bit the lobe of his ear. He sucked in a breath. Her teeth found his throat then and he groaned. The woman smiled, it always sent a thrill through her to play with his resolve.

“She would make a good second wife,” Cora agreed.

Kyanite shook his head. Her heart is far away, “with her king,” he said, there was no Ontari sign for that word.

You like her, Cora accused, as if it were a crime.

I care for her, Kyanite admitted. It is hard to watch the children grow and imagine a life for them anywhere but here.

“I am fond of them too,” Cora agreed, and of her.

She looked at her husband for a long time and wondered what it was he withheld from her. “I need to fetch River and get to work.”

Kyanite nodded, eager to greet the day and get on with his own chores. Cora dressed as she watched the man do the same. She paused at the door before leaving the ger. I will send her, she said.

Kyanite appeared shocked by the suggestion. No!

Love, understanding. “You hold words for her only,” Core said. That is fair.

Kyanite sat down on the furs. “All right.”


Cora found Elyna and the stranger sitting together with the rest of the tribe enjoying breakfast. The Orna had a small red mark on her left cheek and her upper arms and thighs were mottled with light bruising. She sat near them and was soon joined by Ari and River. Was he good? Cora asked after her child.

“He slept all night.” Ari smiled. Did you get any sleep? The two shared a knowing glance and laughed. He is rough.

I remember, Ari waved a swift reply.

Cora reached out to set her hand upon the woman’s knee.

I'm glad he is yours, Ari added. “His brother is kind.”

Cora frowned. She knew Ari had not enjoyed being married to the Onkarl. That seemed another lifetime ago now. He is not that bad, “his heart is heavy.”

“So too is his hand.”

Emily seemed to watch the silent exchange from the corner of her eye, both fascinated and confused by what appeared to be a confusingly tender moment, harshened by the quick, indecipherable signing. That Elyna had been able to learn any of it was impressive to say the least. She tried not to watch as her friend fed the children, but was quick to notice the ease with which the woman tended to her babes. “You’re a natural,” Emily said. “It’s so strange to me… to see you with twins, to see how good you are with them. I’d be a wreck. Here… Alone, surrounded by all these strangers.”

The woman’s words drew Cora’s attention and the Orna turned. “Elyna,” she said, let us carry them for you today., “our work is easy, today we harvest sunflower seeds.”

Ari smiled at the prospect. She had no plans to bear any more children, but took great joy in holding the little ones.

“Kyan,” Onkarl, Cora signed, “wishes to speak with you.” In our ger. Cora still referred to the home as theirs collectively, even if Elyna had spent a night apart from them, almost as if to suggest things would not remain that way.

Emily had missed all but one word. Onkarl, leader, she thought to herself. Did he want something from Elyna? “Where should I go?” Emily asked. Should she follow Cora and Ari? Should she keep an eye on the twins? Were they safe?

Elyna had guided Emily to sit amongst the tribe, helping her gather a bowl of food as she settled with the children and picked at the prepared breakfast. She was comfortable among the tribe, she felt that she understood the people and her place among them. Fervently, she hoped Emily could understand that she was safe within the boundaries of the camp and relax a little. But it was too much to expect acceptance so soon. Elyna tried to remember how she had felt those first few hours, the days that had bled into weeks and then a season. It had taken time…and now as delighted as she was to see her friend, Emily’s appearance caused a thread of tension. She could feel it winding down the base of her spine, a worry that curled around her heart. Emily made it real, that there was a life beyond the grasslands… A life to which she would need to return.

Her gaze caught on the Orna and she flushed, she had grown used to the bare skin of the Ontari, but she hadn’t ever seen such intimate marks on any of the tribe members. What would it be like to make love beneath the furs, with the thin walls of the tent moving in the winds? Elyna drew a breath, trying not to choke on her breakfast as she took a sip of water. Some customs were still new to her. It seems an invasion of Cora’s privacy to see the marks, yet there was no attempt to hide them. Elyna studied her meal, it had been different with Yvan. Everything a secret. Different again with Malcolm, a secret that had then grown into a formal bond and yet…yet Elyna knew that she never would have borne such marks in public. Nor would Malcolm have marked her. Theirs was a different life.

Emily drew her attention and Elyna smiled at her friend, always happy to speak about her children. ‘I don’t know,’ she admitted, ‘it was all a bit desperate at first…’ she wet dry lips, ‘I’ve learnt a lot from the women here,’ she gestured to the gathered tribe with a rueful smile, ‘I…I don’t think I would have learnt so much from my Mother, or Ladies in Aramane and Renmere.’ There it was, fear of returning. She pressed a kiss to Elsie’s head, ‘you know how things are at home, ‘I…I expect that they would have been taken from me and given to nurses, tutors…’ it didn’t matter. There was no use worrying about what hadn’t been.

As Cora approached, Elyna tilted her head to one side. She nodded slowly and lifted both babes towards her and Ari, pressing a kiss to each one before she stood. She dusted off her hands and fixed her clothing, though her heart gave a nervous lurch. She extended a hand back to Emily, helping to pull the woman to her feet.

‘The twins will be safe with Cora and Ari,’ she promised softly, ‘the Onkarl wishes to speak to me,’ Elyna pulled her fingers through her hair, ‘he’ll want to know if there is a threat to his people, more Skyriders falling from the heavens,’ Elyna grinned then, clasping her hand over Emily’s shoulder. ‘You could check on Ridian? Follow the children? They’re going to harvest seeds, I know they always welcome anyone who can help.’ She encouraged gently.

Emily let out a slow breath, studying her friend before making her way after the children. Looking back as Elyna made her way to the Onkarl’s tent.

Despite her outward calm, Elyna knew that she was nervous. She announced herself softly and ducked beneath the leather. Would Emily be safe amongst the Ontari? Elyna waited until her eyes adjusted to the lesser light. Elyna hoped that her trust and faith had not been misplaced, but then, it was often true that she was a poor judge of character.

‘Onkarl?’ She asked quietly.

Elyna had picked up the language with a certain ease he had not seen any outsider adapt to so quickly. She seemed happy here or so he thought until he had witnessed her exchange with the skyrider, who had fallen into their lives like a bolt of lightning and displaced his sense of calm. It had been as if Elyna was held underwater and only now came up for air. Home was closer than ever.

Kyanite was surprised to see the woman without her children. She looked healthy and seemed to thrive here just as they did. Even her skin held a little more colour.

The Onkarl sat with his legs folded, his hands resting on his knees and the soft rabbit pelts that had been hand stitched together with the greatest of skill to form his trousers. They were held up with a thick cow-leather belt that cut into the soft skin of his belly, which even while seated remained chiseled with strong muscle. His chest was bare, the crood black tattoo that stretched across his torso, neck and shoulders stark against his summer tan.

The ger smelled of dried spiced meat, wood ash, leathers and his own subtle musk. The fire had long gone out and looked as if it hadn’t been tended during the night.

Kyanite gestured for Elyna to sit across from him and greeted her in common before going quiet for a spell. He looked thoughtful and soon spoke. “I don’t want Elyna, Luke, Elsie… to go,” he stumbled through his limited use of her language. “I want Elyna to…” Kyanite paused before making the sign with his left hand which signified intimacy in Ontari culture, reserved only for loved ones, stay. He met her eye, the grey of his own darkened by the lack of light in the ger.

Custom dictated that no role could be chosen for an outsider in their first year, not until said outsider had chosen to stay. Kyanite was a man immersed in culture and tradition, but on this he would defy even the gods. He moved to his knees and though he was not a particularly tall man, there was something altogether imposing, yet vulnerable about the look in his eye.

Kissing was non-existent and even unheard of in Ontari culture. Instead to show affection, Kyanite bowed his head to meet Elyna’s as she has seen him do so often with Cora and River, even Elsie and Luke on the odd occasion he got to hold them. He sat back then and signed as he spoke the words in his native tongue. “I want you to stay. You are,” all, “my kin. I want you to be my wife.”

There was something altogether intimate about the setting. Something that Elyna had never felt extended to her before. But then, she couldn’t remember a time when it had just been her and Kyanite alone in the ger before. Goosebumps lifted the hairs on her arms as she kept her gaze on the man’s hands. His bare torso had become almost background in her life, as the Ontari wore so fewer clothes then the people of Renmere and Aramane. But suddenly, he seemed more naked. The woman drew an uneasy breath, she was imagining such things.

Until she wasn’t. His words, his expression and his desires caught and tangled her heart strings. His forehead pressed to hers in a way she knew to be deeply meaningful, important. His kin? He wished for them to stay?

Elyna seemed to slump, like a horse that had been running too long. Head bowed, she closed her eyes. She struggled for the words and signs, because it was impossible to pinpoint exactly what she felt. Longing that life could be so simple, despair that it was not. She had given her heart and soul to Malcolm, and despite his betrayal what would it make her if she chose this path? After all, it was a choice.

She lifted her head, pushing her hair back from her eyes. She scanned Kyanite’s expression, struggling to communicate as was often her way beyond the grasslands.

‘A wife may not have two husbands,’ she explained with the words and gestures she knew. ‘Not in Ontari?’ She didn’t think so anyway, ‘not for my people,’ Elyna shook her head, ‘for Renmere, it would be,’ she scowled, looking around for inspiration, ‘treason,’ she admitted in common. ‘As though I killed a herd of Trekka,’ she frowned, hoping the severity of betraying her husband and the punishment for treason would be clear enough.

Elyna found herself looking down at her hands, how honest to be with the man? ‘I…Elyna, I…I owe my people duty. But I am afraid.’ Had Malcolm tried to rid himself of her and the children? Would he order her death upon return? If everyone believed she had run off with Yvan, she could be hung for treason. She shivered, where would that leave her children?

‘I cannot return to Renmere yet. Volarean injured. I have time. Time to be happy here. When I am able to return to Renmere… Elyna may’ die. She swallowed then, wishing she had Sonya to interpret.

Kyanite was not a shy man, there was little room for that in a place where lives were lived short and fast. He looked Elyna in the eye when she spoke, ready to face her truth, just as he had offered his. Treason, what was this word, he wondered and why did people die for it? Elyna was not wrong, if he had grasped her meaning, a woman did not take two husbands in Emanys. What need was there?

You have your, “king in Renmere,” he said. Far away. Did she share his fear, he wondered, would this king send more skyriders in search of her, to make sure the deed was done? I will protect you! Kyanite struck his chest with a closed fist as he signed the word to emphasise that he meant it. “Treason,” has to go through me first. He had killed for her before. He would do it again.

“Elyna,” that life is far away, he signed. Stay. “Send your sister home…” to tell them she found nothing… only evidence of your death. “Die… and live,” he said.

Kyanite could tell his words were heavy, that they had not caused ease, but added to the weight of her thoughts. His intention was not to cause sorrow. He rocked back onto his feet, bare and surprisingly kempt. The Ontari were known for their personal grooming, even if most called them savages, they took great pride in their appearances and overall health.

A few steps took him to the other end of the ger where he squatted and went through Cora’s herb pouches. It didn’t take him long to find what he was looking for. He walked to Elyna on his knees and closed the tiny leather pouch in her hand. For the, “Vol… Volareon,” he said. Sky beast. Mix in the food to eat. Help heal the wing. The herbs would see to the animal's pain and allow it to rest easy. He held his hand closed over hers as he used the other to sign, his grip gentle.

His fingers traced the length of her arm from wrist to shoulder. Kyanite squeezed her shoulder and gestured to the door with a nod, permitting her to go if she so chose.

Kyanite gave her the honour of his attention, he listened to the words she tried to express, and those she did not. Indeed, Elyna had her King. At least, she’d believed that she did. Until the days of his absence had bled into the best part of a season. They had never had much time together, for this circumstance or that. Sometimes it felt that the whole of Fate conspired against them. Robbing her of his presence…but in Blaze the decision to be absent had been Malcolm’s. He had crossed the world to see her, to marry her, and then he had left.

He had left her in disgrace, hurt that she had missed a dinner, hurt that she hadn’t welcomed his friend more graciously. A friend who hadn’t been able to suffer more than a handful of days of absence. Elyna swallowed her bile, held back her tears and offered Kyanite a half-smile.

I know. She replied, I know you would protect me. And die trying, Elyna realised. Volarean were forbidden from crossing the gate, yet here was Ridian. How long until reinforcements did eventually arrive? Either to find her, or kill her? Elyna felt the thread of fear that had arrived with Emily pull taut across her shoulders, wrapped around her chest, it was harder to breathe. Ontari were brave, the Emanys was a strange, wild and powerful land but even if they were bought down, Dragons could cause immense damage. She had no doubt that Kyanite, Cora and the Blackwater tribe would stand to protect their kin, but they would die for it. Elyna drew an uneasy breath. She was not worth it.

Kyanite presented his solution and Elyna found herself looking at the entrance, as though expecting Emily to walk through. Emily would do it, she would tell the lie if she was asked…and should it ever be discovered or suspected then she would be hung for treason. She gave a slow shake of her head. It was too high a price. If this was her mistake, Elyna knew that the cost should be hers alone.

Elyna avoided staring at the man as he crossed the ger, turning back as his hand took hold of her own. She nodded her understanding and curled her fingers gently around the pouch.

His fingers brushed the bare, bronzed flesh of her arm and her breath caught again. It had been a while. Her union’s with Malcolm so infrequent. Elyna turned and set her head against Kyanite’s before shifting to press her lips against his cheek in a featherlight kiss before she lent back on her haunches.

You are my kin. She returned, I protect you. I protect Blackwater. Elyna bit her bottom lip then, when my time to leave, I leave with sorrow. Heavy heart.

Elyna stood then, trying to shake off her thoughts she tilted her head to the side. ‘When Volarean healed…Kyanite fly?’ She offered with a smile.

He closed his eyes as Elyna bowed her head against his own, the peace of the moment shaken by what was an innocent kiss to the man’s cheek. He blinked at her, uncertain about the gesture. It was strange. Why did his skin tingle where her lips had touched? The sensation travelled deeper and Kyanite closed his fists against the soft pelt of his trousers, rested against his putter thighs. He turned his cheek against a raised shoulder, as if to chase the ghost-like sensation away that lingered on his skin.

Elyna asked him a question and he smirked. Fly, on that strange, winged beast?

Yes! He signed, keen to see this happen.

Kyanite was quiet for a moment then. The thrill of flight would not dull the ache of her loss. He wanted her to know that. “Elyna,” he said, “my…” but the Onkarl did not have the common words and so was forced to use his own. My heart already cries for your departure. He made the Ontari sign for a word that had no equal in common, akin to a phantom heartache, one he knew was to come, which somehow made the experience all the more painful. Bittersweet.

You will take some of my soul with you, he told her. “I dread the day.” A small death.

Suddenly the warrior chief seemed like a boy, chasing away the affection she had pressed to his cheek. There was something irresistible about his enthusiasm to fly. Something that Elyna could recognise and appreciate. She grinned at the man, giving a firm nod. Then he would fly and see Emanys stretched out below him.

‘Emily will have paper,’ Elyna added in the silence that stretched, you will have the best maps. Maps to keep, maps to trade.

Her head bowed in acceptance of his words and she gave another slow nod. I know. Elyna rubbed a hand across her face before pushing it through her hair. Part of mine will remain.

At the entrance, Elyna hesitated, ‘I don’t know what to do with Luke, Elsie.’ She let out her breath, ‘if Elyna treason…perhaps babes also…’ What if Malcolm wanted a clean sweep? What if his supporters felt it best to remove any detraction from the Throne. What if her return to Renmere was death to her twins also?

I don't like, “treason,” Kyanite said.

Children were everything in Emanys. A man was rich if he had children. Men could be terrible to one another, but children were off limits, even when one tribe defeated the next. Kyanite’s own mother and father had been killed by rivals, who had then raised him and his brother.

“Elyna you don’t have to go.” Kyanite folded his arms. “If your king cares… make him come.” Here, Kyanite signed, unafraid of a challenge, even if it descended from the heavens. Their magic would protect them, hide them, which was why Emily had been so easy to take down. An enemy that couldn’t be seen had the upper hand, no matter the numbers they faced.

The Onkarl went silent. He knew his words were not fair. How could a king of all men leave his kingdom to chase one. “If you go,” Kyanite said, you can never come back. It was far too dangerous. He thought back to the night she had come to them. Had it been any other tribe…

Kyanite went to his spear and left the ger in a hurry. He did not want to dwell or worse, beg. Cora caught his eye from across the camp where she was giving people their orders for the day, River strapped to her back and Luke cradled with care against her chest. She smiled at Kyanite and when he shook his head, she frowned.

Ari had her hands full with Elsie and Archer while Arrow leaned against her leg. She wore an open leather bag against each hip, crisscrossed over her body like a pack mule. “Let me help,” Kyanite offered.

Ari handed him a pair of bags and he pulled them over his body and watched as Ari offered Elsie back to Elyna. Cora lifted the fabric of her wrap to show Elyna Luke was fast asleep and dreaming before she turned to head towards the wild sunflowers she had been keeping an eye on all season. She signalled for Kyanite to walk ahead and let Ari fall in behind him before walking alongside Elyna. Cora said nothing for a time, but reached out to take Elyna’s hand. She smiled at the woman and gave her hand a squeeze then released, almost as if to acknowledge that she understood the woman’s denial of her husband and accepted it. Their way of life was far too strange for most outsiders.

Cora painted the toddlers cheeks and noses with a special balm to protect them from too much sun and then got to work cutting away the heads of dried and dying sunflowers. Arrow picked at the seeds on some of the heads that had fallen onto the ground and Kyanite went ahead to make sure the area was safe before focusing on the work at hand.

Emily caught up to them a quarter hour later, having checked on the wounded Volareon. She watched them all for a time before joining in. “The break is bad,” she said to Elyna, doing her best to whisper. “I think… if we intend to leave, we might have to consider walking out of here.”

Ari looked across at her and Emily fell silent for a time. She felt as if it were a crime to speak the common tongue in front of them. “I keep thinking back to that morning, when I saw Malcolm come through the gate,” she said in a low tone, having taken a step closer to Elyna. “Jared and Ben were rushing him away. It was strange. I don’t know how to explain it.”

Emily twisted the head of a sunflower to try and shake the seeds from it. “It felt as though they had already given up on the idea of finding you…”

Emily took a sip of water from her canister and looked in Kyanites direction. “What did he want?” She asked, curious as to why they had been separated this morning.

It was hard to meet the Onkarl’s gaze when he spoke of treason. Elyna didn’t like it either, especially as she knew her own innocence. It was also hard to reconcile even the thought of infanticide with the Malcolm she loved. Surely it wasn’t something he would ever imagine, but what if it was done in his name? If she was hung for treason, who would care for her babies? Who would love them?

I know. Ontari forbid outsiders from returning. Elyna signed in return. She had done her best to learn their customs. The Onkarl was on his feet in a heartbeat. She took her own moment to recover her composure and stood. Following at a distance, she tried to shake off his words with a shrug of her shoulders. Even when he knew where she was, even when in the same country Malcolm could be not be relied upon to visit her. She let out a sigh from the heart. She had been torturing herself since her arrival in the grasslands. From the moment she had started to feel safe. How had she ended up here? Did Malcolm hate her? Would he want them back?

Their interaction upon his arrival in Welles had been so brief it was hard to remember. Had he been pleased? He had apologised for missing the birth. Elyna followed Kyan from the tent, knowing her own thoughts were too dark to linger on. What if he had wanted to intercede at that point…no one would have thought twice about a young mother passing in childbirth.

Elyna waved a greeting to Eri, approaching to accept Elsie once Kyan moved on. Elsie yelped at her mother, small hands grabbing at her hair before she nestled in against Elyna’s neck, making soft babbling noises that couldn’t fail to see the woman smile. No matter what, she was grateful for the time she had been given with the twins and the guidance she had received. Turning, she spotted the sleeping Luke and nodded silent agreement to Cora. Let sleeping babies lie.

The Orna fell into step beside her and Elyna squeezed those strong fingers back. With sorrow, she signed and fell back. Taking the time to watch the work before starting it herself.

Elyna held the furred green stem of the sunflower in her hands, twisting the head in a deft motion. It gave a satisfying snap as she tilted her head. She frowned, weighing their options. A Volarean with a wing beyond repair was like a horse with a broken leg. Likely to die, or be put to death.

‘We have time,’ she reasoned eventually. ‘Time to let it heal.’ Time she signed, hoping to share her knowledge. She ran her fingers over the seeds then, loosening their hold. They rattled. ‘I know there was unrest back home, I suspect you know more of that than me?’ Elyna turned, sighting a part- filled bag of seeds. She gestured for Emily to start shaking them from the head, watched as her friend knelt to do just that. Skyriders were nothing if not practical.

‘Perhaps they were hoping I was gone for good?’ She suggested softly as another sunflower head was twisted beneath her hands. ‘Perhaps they all believe that I ran off with Yvan?’ Her jaw tightened as she passed the head down to Emily to strip.

‘Maybe they have a more suitable wife in mind for Malcolm…if I am so disgraced, and fortunately dead then Burhan is forced to remain in support, and Mal is free to make another political match.’

‘These are twisted thoughts Ely,’ Emily cautioned.

Elyna shrugged, ‘if there is trouble then I can do little from here to help…with Ridian injured, I don’t see how we can travel.’ There was hesitation then, her fingers feathered against a fresh stem.

‘He asked me to stay,’ Elyna admitted softly. ‘I can’t do that…’

Emily was quiet. She didn’t want to admit that Elyna’s suggestions made sense. There was unrest in Renmere and nobles, royalty especially, were known for their deceit and power plays. Had she read him wrong? Was there any part of the new king that could have it all and still long for more? No… A smart man would not leave a mess and Malcolm was a smart man.

Even if the wing healed, the volareon would struggle to carry two, let alone four people. Time to heal also meant time to grow. The twins would not be small forever. Emily considered this and sighed. “I gave Malcolm the letter,” she said. “He didn’t even open it… barely acknowledged it.” She pushed her fingers through her hair and cursed the mess they were in. Elyna deserved better. “Perhaps Edmund is still looking. Judging from my flight path we are about a four day walk from the coast… faster if we can steal a horse.” Emily looked about, sure someone was listening, but could they know what she was saying?

“We can’t stay here, Elyna. You are destined for more than picking seeds and spinning cotton.”

Up ahead, Cora had caught up to Kyanite. She put her right hand on his chest and signed with the other. I am sad too. She looked down at Luke in the wrap. River had fallen asleep, his head heavy against her shoulder.

Kyanite pressed his temple to that of his wife’s and smiled. “You have a gift.”

Cora laughed, the sound strangled by sorrow. Why did she feel as if they had already said goodbye. What did she say?

Kyanite shrugged.

“Husband.”

He sighed. “I don’t know.” That it would be, “treason,” to marry.

“What is treason?” Cora asked.

Death.

Cora frowned. “What about the children?”

You are a mother, he signed. “Elyna,” could no sooner part from the twins than you could River.

Cora nodded. She knew her husband was right. “I will give you many sons,” she promised him.

He smiled and straightened before returning to his work. There were still many preparations to make for Frost and not enough tribe members to see it all done in time.

Elyna stared at the flowerhead in her hand. Malcolm hadn’t opened the letter. Had barely acknowledged it. It was hard to realise how much such a simple truth could hurt. He had sent Emily to find her, but been disinterested to hear anything she had to say. He had been so angry with before setting off to Rhode.

A slow sigh shook the seeds before she passed the head to her friend. Four days walk to the coast. ‘Emily…’ Elyna looked back to her friend, ‘I promised Kyan he could fly on Ridian. I’m not one to make a promise I can’t keep. I’m certainly not going to steal anything from the tribe.’ The woman warned quietly, ‘I won’t betray their trust with theft.’

Elyna snapped the next sunflower, frowning as the petals fell around her bare feet. ‘Meant for more?’ A smile pulled at the corner of her mouth. ‘Like what exactly? I was never going to be allowed to be a normal Skyrider. Emily, you know the destination of my life, the plan everyone deigned it would be. Marry some noble twit,’ she counted it off on her fingertips, ‘bear him children, attended a lot of social functions, die.’ Elyna shrugged. ‘See, I’ve pretty much full filled all my purpose as a noble daughter,’ Elyna shook her head. Her gaze lifted to the tender moment exchanged between Cora and Kyan.

‘Is that truly the life I want for my daughter?’