She sputters, then coughs. Then I see the most peculiar little slits on her neck.Gills. “When’d you learn to breathe underwater?”
Her smile is weak, but beautiful. “Just something I picked up.” She grips my shoulders tight as our little raft sways in the turbulent sea. No sign of ship or land. “You jumped in after me?”
I search for any regret within me but find only relief that Rosalina is all right. We fall back to the plank together, exhaustion taking over.
“How are we going to find our way home from this?” Rosie rasps.
I hold her tight, dangling one of my arms into the open sea.
The current is alive. Alive in the way Ezryn can control the earth, and Kel the ice, and Fare fire. This current is mine to command.Safety, I think, my magic rippling into the surrounding ocean.Carry us somewhere safe.
Arms banded around Rosalina, all goes hazy. The last thing I see is the flicker of something shiny beneath the water.
CHAPTER 46
Ezryn
“My brother told me all about the curse. So, you really turn into a big wolf at night?”
“Yes.”
“Whoa, that’s awesome. Can you do it whenever you want?”
“Yes.”
“You could do it right now?”
“Yes.”
“Will you?”
“No.”
“Oh. But if you did … could I ride on your back?”
“No.”
“Ugh, you’re so annoying. So, when all four of you wolves are together, and one of you starts howling, does it compel everyone to start joining in?”
“No, well, yes, I guess so.” I stop, my feet sinking into the sand, and blink the sweat out of my eyes. I can’t take any more of these insufferable questions. Eleanor has been walking right beside me since we left Caelum Outpost. Not a few steps away. Not a few paces in front or behind, butrightbeside me. Every passing moment has been spent answering some question about Castletree or the Blessings, and now she’s moved on to the curse.
I peer out at the wavering horizon. We’ve been trekking for several hours now, and the sun sits at its highest point in the sky, beaming down relentlessly. The memory of cool sea air and salty breezes is far away. There’s no road beyond the final outpost, only golden sand and sun-baked earth.
All we have to go on is a ratty feather caked in red clay. I know the Ribs are the most northern point of the realm, and so I navigate using the sun, as seems fitting in Summer. Once the sand shifts to red, we’ll know we’re close.
My gaze is drawn to the towering red rock formations up ahead, punctuating the landscape like broken bones. They rise abruptly from the desert floor, narrow and tall, with flat tops. Their long shadows drape over the earth.
I take in a deep breath, the dry air scratching my nose, and adjust the three packs on my back. Somehow after the first hour of walking, I’d ended up with both Eleanor and Delphia’s bags.
“Why’d we stop?” Eleanor says, blinking up at me with an owlish expression that reminds me of her eldest brother.
“I don’t like the look of those rocks,” I say. “Hey, Delphia, get back here.”
Delphia is up ahead. Unlike Eleanor, she’s wanted to be ahead of me the entire time. I didn’t mind when I had sightlines in every direction, but anything could be behind these rocks.
Myths and legends are abundant in the Vale. I’ve learned that even the most far-fetched tale usually has some inkling of truth to it. So, though there may not be drakes camouflaged as mirages, or elementals in the shape of whirlwinds, the Ribs have stories told about them for a reason.
“Delphia, get back here!” I shout when she doesn’t respond. She doesn’t even have her twin blades; they’re strapped to her pack which is currently hanging off my left shoulder.
