Lucenna had seen the darkness that lurked beneath his jests and amusement. She could only assume what things he might have done to get answers, and how he must have felt when he decided the only thing he could do was kill his brother.
“You did it for Tavin’s sake,” she said. “You truly believed Tarn would have harmed his own son?”
“I wasn’t going to give him the chance to try...” His expression creased, his gaze going distant. “When I was a boy, my mother would call me her wild Skelling. I assumed it was merely a term of endearment, since she called Tarn her Phoenix. I believe now she was telling me I was the only one who could defeat him.”
Yet that didn’t sound right to Lucenna. What mother would tell her son to kill her other son?
Klyde looked down at the pack he carried, and she pictured the Skelling talon inside. “Fortunately, I have the fates to thank for preventing me from having my brother’s blood on my hands.”
A mixture of resolve settled on his face, shadowed by distant sorrow. A twinge of guilt settled on her. She never did ask him how he felt, now that his brother was gone.
“A part of you mourns him.”
“I mourn the memory of who he used to be.” Klyde continued on. “He was dead to me a long time ago.”
She watched him go and couldn’t help thinking, even from the back, he looked sad. Tarn had committed many vile deeds, beginning with killing their father. But what had wounded Klyde was that the one person he had admired the most left him to die.
Lucenna caught up to him at the top of a hill, and he nodded at the view. Nestled within the forest below rose a small city.
“Not far now,” Klyde said. “We should find the road soon. Meanwhile, tell me about how you came to join the others. I’d wager it has to do with your medallion. It’s my turn to ask, right?”
Well, she didn’t know they would be trading questions, but she didn’t feel so mistrustful of him anymore. “It’s missing a jewel that I need to find. A Moonstone.”
“Which is on Mount Ida?”
“Yes. So when did you discover?—”
“Wait,” he laughed. “That is all I am getting? I expected a better tale rife with danger and all-powerful mages.”
Lucenna scoffed as they made their way down. “What mages have you met that were all-powerful?”
He paused, blinking at her.
“You’ve mentioned meeting mages before.”
“Ah.” Klyde took her hand as he helped her down a rocky ledge. “I meant the Elite Enforcers in Dwarf Shoe.”
She curled her nose. “Those mages were not all-powerful, Klyde. They would never hold a candle to Azeran.”
So she told him about her great ancestor, and how he revolted against the Archmage to fight oppression. That he had created a Moonstone that helped him during the War of the Guilds. She told him of her life in Magos, the things women suffer there, then the Liberation enlisting her and her mother. Klyde listened intently, all of his attention absorbed by her story.
“War is brewing again. But the Archmage is untouchable as long as he has the Tellur Medallion. It’s my mission to find the Moonstone that belongs to the Luna Medallion so I can give my people a fighting chance.” Lucenna looked up at the faint roll of thunder. I storm was gathering in the south. “I will finish what Azeran started.”
They had finally left the woods and came out onto a paved road. Up ahead rose Evos within the trees, and she spotted a few of the Norrlen Guards waiting for them.
“Finally, we made it.”
When Klyde didn’t answer, she found him watching her steadily, the sea blue of his eyes glinting with something focused and intoxicating.
“What?” Lucenna asked.
“Even the most powerful people can be made to feel powerless. Yet, you found your strength regardless of when an empire declared you had none. And here you are, making a stand like a true force.”
The way he was looking at her with such wonder, it made Lucenna’s skin warm. Somehow, despite not knowing him for long, he always had a way of seeing through her in a way no other had.
“Is that to say you believe I have a chance of defeating the Archmage?”
Klyde brushed the silvery locks from her face. “You are a storm, lass. May the Gods have mercy on whoever stands in your way.”
