“Dea Nikos.” It immediately went up in flames. I hurriedly turned it off, worried that if Artemisia had scouts in the area, they would spot it.
“You do know that it’s unfair that you can do that, don’t you?” Ahyana asked with a smile and shake of her head. “All those abilities.”
My eyes widened at her words. Maybe this was what the sphinx had meant. She had said I had “many.”
Io came to the same conclusion. “Lia, you have many powers. Many aspects.”
I had at least three so far. Did I have others? I wished I had a list of aspects in front of me so that I could say each one and see what happened.
“How? Why?” I asked.
“Do I have to say ‘because you’re the savior’ again?” Io asked.
What else could I do?
When we resumed our travels, I went through the aspects that I could remember. It was difficult to recall them because my brain wanted to focus on Xander and freeing him.
But of the ones I did say, nothing happened.
It was nearly midnight when Ahyana turned to us and said, “We’re here. They’re just over this ridge.”
We tied the horses to the base of the hill and climbed up to see the army. We crawled on our bellies to peer over the ridgeline.
The moon was full but we wouldn’t have needed it. There were so many campfires dotting the ground beneath us—an ocean of people and fires, lighting up the landscape like the stars in the sky. We couldn’t even see where it ended—the back part of the army was hidden behind some hills.
“By the goddess,” Zalira whispered.
None of us had known how large this army was.
“What is—” Io reached down and pulled something out from underneath her ankle.
It was a black bird with an arrow through it. Ahyana took it from her and anger made her voice shake. “A raven. Dolion is killing them just like he said he would. In case any of them are Rokh.”
Why couldn’t I feel Xander? Maybe the poison was affecting him, but we were close enough now that I should be able to sense him again.
I would not allow myself to consider the possibility that he was dead.
“Let’s go back down the hill,” I said. I was sure we were far enough away not to be heard but didn’t want to risk someone noticing us.
When we reached the bottom, Zalira asked, “What’s the plan?”
“You think Lia has a plan?” Ahyana responded, elbowing her sister slightly.
“I do have one. And it involves me going in alone.”
They all started to speak at once, even Suri, but I held up my hands. “This is not about me doing it alone or wanting to leave you behind. I know we’re stronger together. This is about how getting in and out willbe so much easier with one person than it would be with five. We will draw too much attention.”
“She’s right,” Io said sadly as she sat on the ground.
“And I’m in the best position to fight my way out if something happens,” I added, not wanting to leave out any of my arguments.
Zalira crossed her arms over her chest. “What if you do need our help?”
“Then I’ll use the sword. I’ll light it quickly and then put it out. Watch for it. If you see it, then come running.” I said this to appease them. I had no intention of putting any of them at risk if I could help it.
“How do you plan on sneaking in and not getting caught?” Io looked up at me, and I sat down next to her before I answered.
“I’m going to dress up like one of the women following the army. I’m going to need a heavy rain from Zalira and I’ll just walk in. And when I have him, I’ll need a distraction when I’m coming out, so I’ll need you to watch for me to help me escape. I thought you could do that, Ahyana. What can fly in the rain?”
