I'd waited so long for this night, this chance, only for it to end like this.
My elk shook the snow from his antlers and breathed hot air onto my face. Tightening his bridle, I turned to my father, who shivered inside his bundle of fur cloaks.
I must have inherited the aversion to cold from him.
"Be careful," Father chattered. "You'll be safe with Killian. Do as he says. And Liam—" He looked past me. "Protect your sister."
Liam mimicked an Aenir salute, pressing two fingers to his breast and flicking them outward.
Grabbing my shoulders, Father planted a kiss on my forehead and hurried away.
Flicking up my hood, I climbed onto my elk's back and took the reins. Liam swung up onto his and nodded at me to lead.Taking a deep breath, I pressed my boots into the elk's flank and began the ride out of Kentoro toward Galasvar.
The trip would be short. Kentoro was near the border of Aenir, and Galasvar sat just within Muirashin territory.
Spending a night in the snow might kill me, though.
Liam's elk trotted alongside mine as we left the city gates and rode along the snow-covered road.
"Humor me," he said. "What are the odds an army is actually loitering out in Ceortha?"
Nobody lived in the Ceorthan Shadowlands. Nobody. Our eyes could not penetrate the fathomless black, save to spot silhouettes of horrors lurking in its depths. There was a reason walls guarded our southern borders, and none were allowed to cross them.
"About zero," I answered.
"You think the Paragon's gone mad?"
"Paragons do not go mad, Liam," I said. "It's his job to protect us. He's probably just being cautious."
The king trusted Paragon Killian implicitly. We all did. The legendary weapons the Paragons wielded had never chosen incorrectly—all who had inherited the title lived up to the expectations.
Peerless warriors, brilliant negotiators, and utterly fearless in the face of death. There were only four—yet the kingdoms valued them more than armies.
"Right," Liam muttered, looking away.
I inhaled a frigid breath and peered through the falling snow at the fields of white, mulling over what I would say to the Paragon. I'd never met one before.
Would he even listen to me?
No other country allowed women to be diplomats. Had I been sent to Tsuyan, the men would have laughed me out of town.
Eventually, I decided the simplest course would be best. I'd approach the Paragon with respect and tell him the truth: the king was in disbelief and demanded a thorough explanation.
Resigning myself to a long ride, I rehearsed my words as the hours ticked by. The road to Galasvar would take two days, riding swiftly.
Naught but snow-covered fields passed us by on the first day. We rode well into the evening and made camp when the starlight began to die. Plunged into near-perfect shadow, we sat around the fire, buried under piles of fur.
Liam didn't seem bothered by winter. Sighing, he shifted closer to me while I chattered myself to sleep.
"Do you remember," he said. "When I said I'd want to court a Fireborn?"
"I see the merits now," I breathed. "Shame I'm not allowed."
"Take a lover. Everyone does it."
"I have a reputation to uphold."
"I don't." Liam chuckled.
