The crone’s omen pounds a deathly staccato in my head:Not yet awakened... The fates will wait until they are called.
Roshan’s voice is a whisper. “Sometimes we have to believe the illogical. Even if the stories aren’t real or you don’t believe in old magic, you have a gift, Suraya, one that can be used to defend or to destroy. If the queen gets her hands on it, you know what path she will take.”
As much as it’s hard to believe that I am somethingother,he’s not wrong about the queen. Now that her son is dead, she’ll want revenge... and with the entire imperial army at her command, there’s nowhere my family and loved ones can hide.
Ihave to protect them. So that means I’m going to have to figure out what this magic can do. For my sake, for my family’s sake... and for all the innocent people in Oryndhr. The only way to fight against a powerful force is tobecomea powerful force.
“Can I trust you, Roshan?” I ask, not hiding my fears that he, too, might turn on me.
I’m not sure whether I imagine the infinitesimal beat of something—hesitation or concern or something else—but he nods. “Yes.”
“What do we do now?”
He stares at me, eyes shadowed, but stands to dust his hands on his uniform. “We keep going and find the Dahaka. They’re our best bet to stay safe.”
My shock is written all over me—that’s the last thing I expected him to say, not after they killed so many of his people. Not after two of them just tried to kill us. “Why?They’re the enemy.”
Face solemn, Roshan tilts his head. “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”
I suppose that might be true to a point. But I’m not sure it’s logic I like.
“There’s nothing out here,” I say, scanning the red-earthed wasteland in despair.
He observes the sky. “The men who took us were heading north. Let’s continue that way. It’s better than going back.”
Roshan grabs the reins, and I join him on the driver’s bench. Thank the heavens the horse is still attached by its bridle and hadn’t bolted when we’d tumbled off the coach. “Rest if you can,” he tells me. “Do the breathing and relaxation exercises I showed you.”
I comply, working my muscles starting with my toes, and eventually, I’m lulled by the golden landscape and the sound of the carriage. It seems like hours have passed, but in truth it’s less than an hour before Roshan starts to slow. Noises filter toward us. Blinking the grit from my eyes, I swallow a gasp as we crest the next rise.
A dozen armed men on horseback surround a shimmering portal that’s five times the size of the one that brought me to Kaldari. My stomach tightens at the flag bearing the image of a jagged lightning bolt on a red sphere flying high. That’s no ordinary flag—it’s the symbol of the Dahaka fortress, the Indraloka, named after the heaven of the gods.
I bite my lip hard, the calm I found on the drive evaporating under the wild thrashing of my heart. My stomach starts to heave, the idea ofwillingly going to the Dahaka making me nauseated. I think about the bodies in the capital city and dry heave. They’re fucking killers! What in the flaming pits of Droon have we gotten ourselves into?
By the time the carriage rolls to a stop, my entire body is snapped tight with nerves. They’re going to see right through us! I have no doubt that these Dahaka will be trained, ruthless soldiers, ready to slit our throats at the slightest provocation.
“Roshan,” I exhale shakily, and snatch his hand without thinking.
“Trust me,” he whispers. “Take this.” He hands me a circular medallion. When he sees my expression, he shrugs. “Those two men had them. It’s an identification marker, I think.”
I take it and drape it around my neck. Panic tastes like ash as we descend from the coach. Who knows where this portal leads? I mean, it goes to the Indraloka base, but where exactly is that? Jaxx? Eloni? Somewhere beyond the known realm, like the place where Javed’s captured azdaha is from? We’ve all heard stories about the monsters that infest the distant lands over the Barrin Mountains to the north... stories of mythical beasts that prey on people.
What if I pass through this portal and can never return home? I wonder if Papa, Amma, and Laleh have heard about the attack on the palace by now. Will they believe I’m dead? The only place I want to go is home... not wherever this goes.
Every instinct in me is screaming at me to turn and flee, but I know the minute I do that I’ll be dead. These silver-armored guards mean business. Roshan’s fingers graze my elbow in silent reassurance. The men acknowledge us with grim faces, eyes dropping to the medallions we both wear. For a moment, I feel as though they can see right through us, but they simply wave us forward without any fanfare. I can’t believe our luck!
I start moving, but Roshan pauses to say something to a soldier with several bands around his arm, presumably denoting his position. The man gives a brief nod.
“Go, I’m right behind you,” Roshan says in a low voice.
“What did you say to him?” I whisper back, curious.
“A convincing lie about who we are. Go, Suraya, before they change their minds.”
With a shallow breath, I close my eyes and step through the portal. As before, a sticky feeling washes over my skin, and there’s a slight swell of pressure on my flesh before it’s gone.
I open my eyes, and I’ve stepped into what looks like an enormous bunker. It’s full of armed men and women clad in the same armor I’m currently wearing.
Roshan steps out of the portal beside me, and we share a quick glance.
