Page 2 of Drawn into Oblivion

Next to her sat her young brother on a cushion of his own, but he sat on the edge of it, eyes alight with anticipation for the sparring match that would soon begin. His garb matched his sister’s, though it lacked the birds, and the vibrant blues were a perfect combination with his golden hair.

Mai was still stunned at how much the empress had changed since the day she’d met her…and challenged her—Mai couldn’t forget that shameful moment. Shumei had been practicing defensive spells with Vallen, and though she had been dressed well, she had seemed uncomfortable in her finery. Exertion had tangled her hair and flushed her face. The empress of today, however, was the epitome of poised beauty, all soft skin and luscious black hair. Mai found herself wishing she could look half as regal as her empress.

Looking down at her own clothes, Mai smoothed her fingers over the unadorned silk. Her dress that day was a muted gray, and her under-robe was a lighter shade of the same color. She preferred not to draw attention to herself with flattering patterns or colors. Any men giving her even the briefest of glances put her on edge.

At first, she had been harsh to almost everyone around her, distrustful of the men and unapproachable to any women seeking her advice as one of the few crows with experience wielding magic. After all, she had been self-taught. Why couldn’t others do the same? she’d figured. Then the empress had pointed out that sharing her knowledge was not only her duty as a house elder, but would help her improve her own skills.

And of course, the empress had been right. Moreover, Mai’s rapport with her fellow female crows vastly improved. The men, however?

She knew what they muttered about her. Ice-cold. Stiff, distant, reticent. And she hoped to keep it that way. No amount of wheedling from the empress would convince her to be anything but arm’s length from them—or even farther, if she could help it.

The sparring match the empress had come to witness was part of the training for the advanced soldiers, a talented subset of her force of eighteen hundred men and women—mostly men, a most irksome imbalance. Vallen and Rosuke, high general and commander respectively, were off to one side, joking with each other as they stretched their bodies and tested the balance of their swords.

Though the empress was the most magically talented—her knowledge of circles and incantations was unmatched—Vallen and Rosuke were the deadliest fighters, not just with swords but various weapons. The two of them sparring was something to behold.

Mai’s heartbeat picked up as Vallen and Rosuke readied themselves in the center of the demonstration space at the other end of the courtyard. Their observers hung back by the walkway.

These advanced soldiers had several paths of assignment ahead of them. Some would become part of the empress’s personal guard, some the house elders’ personal guard, and some would command the empress’s army when she took them into Oblivion. Mai knew the names of only a few of the high-ranking officers in attendance, such as Captain Yuushi and Commander Jun. She had seen the former talking with Elder Kagumi of House Berry a few times—and suspected the two were secretly attached—and the latter was a quiet, gloomy middle-aged man. He was also broad-chested, and significantly taller than even Vallen or Rosuke, so Mai kept her distance.

Despite how serious their future responsibilities, the majority of the advanced soldiers cheered and teased their superiors while waiting for the match to begin. Mai could barely hear Vallen and Rosuke over the soldiers’ shouts.

“You hear that? They cheer loudest for me,” Vallen boasted as he faced Rosuke. “They see the real talent.” Though he was quite tall, he wasn’t bulky. Rather, his physique was battle-ready—lean, quick, and flexible. He had clean, sharp features, and a set of sky-blue eyes Mai’s fellow crow ladies swooned over, even though he was very much taken. In fact, the empress was set to tie him to her as her official consort in just ten days.

As if on cue, the men shifted their loyalties to the commander, earning a good-natured grin from Vallen. Rosuke shook his head. “No one likes cockiness, my friend.” He pointed at Vallen while holding his sword suggestively in front of his pants. “Unless it’s my cockiness, of course.”

Vallen and the rest of the advanced soldiers barked with laughter. Mai quirked her lips and glanced at Empress Shumei, who wore a similar expression of mild admonishment.

As Rosuke twirled his blade and chuckled, Mai cast her eyes over his athletic form. He was leaner than Vallen, but just as quick. His humble sparring clothes could not hide the clean lines of his wide shoulders and slim hips. The more formal military garb he sometimes wore only enhanced them.

Today wasn’t the first day she’d found herself studying him—a disturbing preoccupation she strove to smother—but even as she stood there, her fingers twitched with her desire to feel his wide shoulders and stroke his sword-calloused hands. But only out of jealousy, she told herself. His skill with a sword had honed his body into that of a warrior.

When it came to his face, something about his good looks struck her as almost feminine—not that she personally found him attractive, of course—and it wasn’t his long hair, full lips, or high cheekbones. Perhaps it was his eyes, she realized—deep-set with thick lashes and irises “like the sea,” according to some. She had never been to the ocean, so she couldn’t say for sure, but if his eyes were the color of the sea, it was a place she wouldn’t mind visiting.

Vallen turned away from Rosuke to the semicircle of soldiers. He held up his hands, and the men immediately obeyed his command for silence. Mai couldn’t see his face, but the way the soldiers straightened and focused on him spoke to his sober expression. Rosuke sheathed his sword.

“Today, Commander Rosuke and I shall demonstrate a dangerous kind of close combat. Most of the Damned One’s creations have excellent dark-vision, and thus prefer to fight in darkness. That is exactly what happened when we engaged the Damned One’s champion in battle just over three months ago.”

Mai frowned as she recalled that terrifying night and the moment the empress’s light spell was snuffed, plunging them into darkness. She looked to Empress Shumei, whose expression was inscrutable from across the courtyard.

“That night, the empress’s quick thinking saved us. She casted an impressive light spell on our blades that the enemy could not magically douse from afar, but casting such magic in battle, even for soldiers as talented as you, is rather difficult. It’s a touchy spell that requires concentration and finesse.” Some of the men glanced at their watchful empress with pride and adoration. “Her light spell evened the playing field for the four of us, but you may not have such an opportunity. You may not even have moonlight or starlight to see by.”

Vallen paused to take a length of cloth from inside his shirt, and one of the soldiers raised his hand.

“Yes, Minoru?” Vallen prompted. Rosuke also pulled out a length of cloth.

“You said ‘the four of us.’ I had always thought the battle was fought by you, the commander, and the empress. Who was the fourth person?”

Several others nodded as though they had wondered the same thing. Mai squeezed herself tighter to the cherry tree, wishing she could become part of the trunk rather than endure the wave of embarrassment swamping her. No one knew she had been at that battle?

“The elder of House Sakura was the fourth,” Rosuke answered. “Elder Mai and I fought back-to-back while the high general and the empress pushed through the demons to reach the Damned One’s champion.”

The men buzzed with conversation. Mai curled her fingers against the tree trunk and bit her lip. She couldn’t explain what hearing her name on his lips did to her heart rate or why it made her cheeks red. But she did know she wished this Minoru hadn’t opened his mouth.

“Elder Mai?” Minoru obnoxiously exclaimed, making her wince. “I had no idea she could fight. She never practices with any of the advanced troops. Doesn’t even speak to us.”

Even from the other side of the courtyard, Mai saw Rosuke stiffen. Her first impression of him had been that of an unreliable flirt, someone who feigned confidence but ran at the first sign of trouble. However, when the dog soldiers had bounded toward them, baying and snarling, Rosuke’s focus had saved her from injury countless times. Though she had slain several demons, not too bad with a sword herself, Rosuke had killed a couple dozen, some of them aiming for her. His attentive eyes and fast reflexes had kept her covered without getting in her way or doing all the fighting.

“Elder Mai fought bravely, which is all I could ever ask of any of the empress’s soldiers,” Rosuke said, voice stony. His defense of her made her heart pound even harder.