She felt someone pull her hands, and she thought it was Alawani until she heard Milúà’s voice. L’?r? took in deep breaths as pain surged through her body. She sat up and wiped the blood that streamed out of her nostrils, then rose to her feet.
‘Come with us now,’ Milúà said, her braids flying in the wind like tendrils. ‘Or die here and let the vultures use your bones for their nests.’
L’?r? looked at her captors. Milúà no longer looked like the pristine maiden. Her white robes were stained with blood and sand and torn in several places, although her goldarmour still shone brightly. Tofa, on the other hand, looked like he had just had a good day at training. Not a single cut or tear marred his bare chest or trousers. L’?r? sighed, her breath ragged and trembling as she exhaled. It was over.
Tofa’s voice cut through her thoughts. ‘Take the prince and the captain’s ward back to the city. That’s an order, maiden,’ he added in a steel voice.
Alawani glared at him and moved closer to L’?r?. Her eyes grew wide with terror. She knew exactly what her brother meant and felt a chill crawling up her spine. ‘No. Why are you separating us? Wherever they go, I go.’
‘As the words have left my mouth, maiden,’ Tofa said, ignoring the looks on their faces.
‘So let it be done, Crown Heir.’ Milúà nodded and pulled Alawani closer to her.
L’?r? was still lost in a cascade of emotions, her mind spinning in circles. He was going to kill her. Why else would he separate them? It was just like Ìyá-Idán had told her. Of all the people in the kingdom, he most desperately needed her to die. At that thought she allowed her agbára to hover just beneath the surface, and in her mind, she calculated how many steps she would need to take to touch him.
She was still stunned, unsure of her next move, when she saw Alawani move in the corner of her eye. When she turned, he pulled out Milúà’s dagger from her sheath and braced it against his own neck. With each step, he moved further away from their reach.
‘Let her go,’ Alawani said, pressing the blade to deepen as they all turned to look at him.
‘Stop that!’ L’?r? shouted above the storm, and she could taste sand in her mouth. ‘What are you doing?’
Alawani drew blood.
Milúà shouted, ‘Stop!’ The maiden’s eyes were filled withterror, and her outstretched arms trembled in his direction. ‘Don’t you dare!’
L’?r? looked at her and realized at that moment that Alawani and Command were right after all. The maiden wanted him alive, and by the look on her face, it was more than that. She needed him alive. L’?r? couldn’t help but wonder what the Holy Order would do to a maiden who lost her Àlùfáà – let alone the Prince Àlùfáà.
On this, they could agree. Alawani couldn’t die.
Rmí stood back from the four of them, putting enough distance between himself and Tofa.
‘I don’t care what you do to yourself, Alawani. Join your father if you must, but this girl isn’t going anywhere,’ Tofa growled and pointed at L’?r?.
The blade moved, and more blood spilt.
‘No!’ Milúà screamed, mad with fury. She turned on Tofa. ‘Let her go, Tofa!’
‘How can you ask me that? Don’t you know who she is?’ Tofa said.
‘I don’t care who she is. I don’t care what she is. Let her go now!’ She turned on Alawani. ‘Stop this madness! Stop it!’
Crimson wet the prince’s hand, and he pressed deeper.
Milúà pulled out a gold rod from her thigh strap, and with a single tap, it grew, bringing out the sharp end of a spear from within it. She looked to L’?r? and said, ‘Go.’ Then pointed it at Tofa, ‘Let her go.’
L’?r? moved back to where Rmí stood by the wall. There was no way to reach Alawani with Tofa and Milúà standing between her and him.
She shouted over them, ‘Alawani, don’t do this, please!’
‘You have your orders, maiden. Don’t make me repeat it,’ Tofa growled at Milúà.
Milúà’s frown deepened. She ignited her spear, pointed itat the crown heir, and said in a low, defiant tone, ‘Let the girl go. I can’t let him die. He’s Àlùfáà.MyÀlùfáà.’
Tofa brandished his dagger in response. What good would that do against the maiden’s blazing spear? In the next heartbeat, Tofa had poured his agbára into it, turning the black blade furnace red. It melted in his hands. He pressed and pulled until it turned into a thin, razor-sharp sword. Even Milúà stepped back in surprise at the transformation, but it didn’t change her mind. She moved towards him and struck. Where the gold staff and the black sword met, sparks flew. She withdrew and went in again, this time trying to cut the blade off his hands, but he caught it to strike. The sparks must have gotten into her eyes because she screamed and held her arm up to shield them. Clearly, Tofa was not trying to hurt her because he had the chance to end the fight immediately but he held off, allowing her to recover.
L’?r? tried to meet Alawani’s gaze but he stood in place on the other side of the fight, avoiding her eyes. This wasn’t the time for this. If he could just find the energy to blast a hole in the wall …
Behind her, Rmí looked like he was ready to run as well. She knew if he left this time, she’d never see him again.
