Chapter 21-Escape
"They changed clothes," said Canisp disbelievingly. "Switched places. That was the plan?"
"Apparently so," Orion murmured, flapping from perch to bedpost and leaning over, scrutinizing Hosni with piercing intensity. "I hope he didn't run into anyone vaguely intelligent on his way up," he added, "Or we're all dead. That disguise is fooling nobody up close."
Canisp failed to see how he could be so casual about this. "But…that's the worst plan I've ever heard!" she exclaimed. "We still have someone to rescue from the dungeons, but now we don't have Ilona to help us and we don't dare split up in case someone sees Hosni and we need to protect him! All she did was make the whole rescue mission even more impossible than it already was!"
The same thought had clearly come to Orion. Rather than fear or frustration, however, when he turned his gaze to Canisp, his eyes held another emotion.
Pity.
"Canisp," he said softly, "I think her plan's worked out exactly the way she meant it to."
For a moment, Canisp stared at him, uncomprehending. Then, slowly, painfully slowly, understanding began to build in some dark recess of her mind. She took an instinctive step back, away from Orion. In her heart, something had already been realized, and if she looked at it she would know what it was, but her mind refused to acknowledge it, didn't want to know because if she knew what it was she would have to face it…Without really knowing why, she was shaking her head helplessly, backing further away from the Eagle she thought she trusted and the truth in his eyes, a truth she could not, would not, was not willing to face.
"No," she said in a strangled whimper; but, against her will, even as she cringed and tried to force the realization back, the pieces fell sharply and irrevocably into place.
"No!" she howled, scrambling backwards, wings flaring, sending a silver-and-emerald perch crashing to the floor.
"Shh," Orion breathed, fluttering down from the bedpost. He hopped worriedly around her paws, trying to quiet her, unable to hide his own pain, his own fear. "Shh, Canisp, someone will hear-"
He cut himself off with a screech of shock as he leapt back, Canisp's deadly jaws snapping shut a hair's breadth from his beak. Her vision blurred with tears, she lashed out again, beyond rational thought, this time managing to rip several feathers from his chest. The Wolf bared white fangs and gave a deep, throaty snarl, but it wasn't fury in her eyes; it was pain, and confusion, and above all a terrible, deep-rooted, overwhelming fear. And even as she pressed a heavy paw to his chest, holding him pinned to the floor as she stood over him, hunter and prey, the Eagle understood.
Orion stared up at her, eyes wide, feathered chest rising and falling rapidly as the changeling fought to control herself, her eyes screwed shut, visibly trembling. He didn't dare make a sound; primal fear is not a force to be toyed with, and the beautiful Wolf was inches away from snapping completely.
"We can't let her do it," Canisp whispered, voice breaking. "We can't."
With a tiny, lost little whimper, she managed to lift her paw. Her eyes opened slowly and locked with Orion's. Struggling to his feet, feathers ruffled but none the worse for wear, the Eagle butted his head reassuringly against her foreleg. No apology was required.
Orion looked up at her, pitying once more. "It's not our decision to make," he said gently. Canisp's ears laid back flat against her skull and she sank to her belly, eyes closing against the helplessness of that truth.
Ilona shivered.
After the scorching heat of the stable yard, the cool, moist air of the dungeons had at first been a blessed relief. Coupled with Hosni's reassuringly uninjured presence, the effect had been downright pleasant. With Hosni safely on his way, however, and the flush of nerves… among other things… no longer heating her veins, the refreshing coolness had become a decidedly unpleasant chill.
She rubbed at her arms, trying to create some form of warming friction, and was grateful that Hosni was a Palace slave. She missed the solid weight of Hosni's pendant on her chest, the reassuring press of a dagger on her hip, and the clothes were rough, but at least they were in decent condition, capable of providing some form of insulation. For the first time, she wished she had Canisp's thick fur.
In reality, the dungeon wasn't all that cold. She expected her shivers had less to do with the temperature and more to do with the icy terror in her gut. She held a fistful of coarse fabric to her face, forcing herself to take deep, even breaths. The lingering scent of horse, charcoal, sweat and hot sand comforted her; surely by now Canisp would have figured out what was happening, and they would be on their way out of the city. The only person who could be hurt was Ilona, and she had to be strong enough to handle those consequences…or, at the very least, clever enough to avoid them.
The sound of approaching voices reached her ears. Inhaling one more lungful of Hosni's warm scent, she pulled his grey cap lower, hiding her face as best she could and ducking her head.
This was it.
Vesta shifted restlessly, and Hosni absently patted her flank. Canisp understood the sentiment; she felt terribly exposed here, standing around in broad daylight with only beehive-shaped tombs shielding them from sight. The sun was climbing steadily in the sky, and already her fur was growing damp with sweat; if they were going to stand around in the hot sun, she knew it made more sense to be moving, putting distance between themselves and Tashbaan, but she couldn't bring herself to move.
Not yet, she thought. Not yet. Just a few more minutes. Give her a few more minutes.
As Ilona was walked through the Palace between two armed guards, her heart hammered erratically against her ribs, as if demanding to be let out of her body. This plan, it said indignantly, was seeming more and more idiotic by the second and it wanted no part of this madness.
Shut up, she wanted to tell it. This is all your fault, anyway.
That brief moment of distraction was her undoing. Not watching where she was going, her foot caught on a doorjamb, and she stumbled slightly. Ishdar Tarkaan caught her elbow, helping to steady her, and without thinking she looked up and flashed him a quick smile of thanks.
At first, he returned the smile politely. Then he froze, and Ilona realized her fatal mistake.
"Captain?" asked the other guard. "Is there a problem?"
Ilona shook her head slightly, begging Ishdar with her eyes not to give her away. For a moment, he hesitated, and she felt a tiny bubble of hope.
Never looking away from her face, he said quietly to the guard, "Sound the alarm."
A series of long, low trumpets sounded from the city, shattering the silence of the Tombs. Orion's head swiveled towards the sound, sharp eyes focusing on the city, and Vesta's ears pricked up nervously. Canisp, finally in human form to avoid the heat, lifted her head from her knees. Only Hosni was unaffected by the sudden sound, kneeling next to Vesta and re-checking the fit of her saddlebags.
"Canisp," Orion said quietly. "We should go."
He was right. They had wasted too much time already; if they wanted to escape, they had to leave now. But Canisp couldn't move. She was clinging desperately to the last thread of hope; Ilona always had a plan. Surely she would meet them here; any minute now, she'd show up with the story of some brilliantly executed escape. She had to. The alternative was too painful.
…mercilessly bright blade flashing in the sun, lifting toward the heavens, whistle of death, wet thud, scarlet blood spreading over the courtyard, seeping in and around the flagstones…
Canisp snarled and shook her head violently, clearing it of her waking nightmare. "We'll give her five more minutes," she said, aware of the barely suppressed panic in her voice.
"We don't have five more minutes," said Orion suddenly. "Five armed horsemen en route from Tashbaan. They'll be on us unless we leave now."
For a cluster of heartbeats, Canisp hesitated.
She stood abruptly and shifted to wolf form, leaping and fluttering onto the Tomb. She couldn't see any horsemen, but she trusted Orion's vision. "Stay with Vesta and Hosni until they've gotten their bearings," she told him shortly. "We're going due North, through the oasis. I'll follow you from the air. Once they're on the right track, you can join me."
Orion nodded curtly and dropped to his perch on Vesta's bridle. Hosni looked up at the movement and seemed to understand what was happening. He nodded as if he'd been asked a question, and climbed awkwardly onto Vesta's back, grasping her mane. Vesta tossed her head, eager to be off, but Canisp hesitated.
She cast one last, heartbroken look over Tashbaan. She could now see in the distance the telltale raise of dust that heralded their pursuers, but she couldn't bear to leave, couldn't bear to break her most important promise.
"Canisp," Orion said urgently.
"Ori," she whispered. She tore her eyes from the city and met his gaze. "We promised we'd never leave her behind."
A/N: Did you hear that? That was the sound of my heart breaking.