Chapter 22

"Hold up, what?" Eliena asked. "What do you mean we're in danger being here?"

"As I said, Carthak has lost favor with the Gods. We fear that something terrible is going to happen. Lindhall and I both feel the mounting doom," Numair replied.

"You sure it isn't just the impending marriage?" Eliena asked, grinning at Kaddar, who had been silent through most of it.

"Yes," Numair snapped. Daine gave a low whistle and Eliena stepped back. Numair rarely lost his temper over anything. It's the stress, Eliena reasoned. But a voice in the back of her head told her that it was something more- Numair liked her. As more than just his student and friend.

"Relax, Numair. I was just teasing," Eliena said lightly.

"This is no time for teasing," Numair told her seriously.

"No, you're just too tightly wound at the moment. Take a deep breath and relax," Eliena retorted.

"Too tightly wound… what in the name of the Goddess are you talking about?" Numair demanded.

"I think you know," Eliena shot back, narrowing her fiery violet eyes. "Or shall I rehash the entire conversation before everyone?"

"What do you mean?" Numair asked.

"This!" Eliena called to mind the conversation before Numair had kissed her. It was a trick Thom had showed her. She cemented the memory and pressed her hands together. When she felt the heat of her Gift, she pulled her hands apart, forming a ball of fire. There was an image and everyone could see and hear it.

Eliena turned to Numair who sat beside her on the bed. "Your turn." Numair smiled.

"Think it over, Eli," he said, and suddenly became serious. "Love is important."


"Love has nothing to do with alliance marriages," she retorted.

He kissed her softly on the lips. "Love always has something to do with it."

The fire disappeared and Numair's eyes were wide. Kaddar was gaping, Lindhall looked shocked, and Daine looked… was that hurt?

"Where did you learn that?" Numair asked breathlessly.

"Thom," Eliena replied.

"Did that really happen?" Kaddar asked. He turned to Numair, eyes flaming. "When?"

"Relax, Kaddar," Eliena told him. "It was before any of the marriage stuff. The first time actually." She couldn't help but wonder why Kaddar cared so much about the kiss.

"Numair…" Daine whispered. Numair looked at her. She seemed to grow bolder and looked at him, blue-gray eyes burning in a way Eliena had never seen before. "You're a sick, perverted man!" Everyone gaped at Daine. She never spoke like that. "Eliena is fifteen and you're almost forty!" She clenched her fists. "What were you thinking?"

"I…" Numair didn't finish the sentence. Eliena didn't want him to.

"Listen, whatever is going on in Carthak needs to be stopped. Or started. Whatever. We need to do something." She turned to Lindhall. "What do you propose?"

"I'm not sure… what I know is that-" he lowered his voice, "Ozorne needs to be taken off of the throne."

"He'll never do it," Kaddar said, keeping his voice low. "He'll die before he gives up that throne."

"And are you ready to become emperor?" Eliena asked, looking at Kaddar. Kaddar bit his lip.

"Are you ready to become empress?" he questioned in reply. Eliena's eyes grew wide and she shook her head.

"No." She sighed. "Then what can we do?"

"You said he'd die before giving up the throne?" Daine asked. Everyone looked at her.

"Yes…" Kaddar replied. She looked up at everyone, eyes shining.

"Then I say we do it."

"What!" Numair and Eliena gasped. Daine never spoke like this! She turned to Eliena.

"Look, Leo and Neal haven't left. They're hiding. Trust me, they'll help. And I'm sure we could gather others… I bet Rikash would help. Oh, don't make that face Numair. He's been on our side since he found out Ozorne was holding those Stormwings." No one said anything. "Odds bobs, someone say something!"

"I think that's brilliant!" Eliena said. "Leo and Neal, gathering people, Stormwings…" She gasped. "Rikash gave that Stormwing feather to Ozorne. If we could get him to use it…"

"He would become a Stormwing." Daine grinned. "And no immortal can hold a mortal throne."

"Kaddar would become emperor…" Eliena started

"And we could all go home!" Daine finished happily.

"You're forgetting something, girls," Numair remarked.

"What's that?" Daine asked.

"If Kaddar is emperor, Eliena becomes empress," Numair replied. Eliena and Kaddar exchanged a look. "And I don't think that's what Eli wants, is it?"

"Don't assume," Eliena snapped. "Maybe it is! I hate being told what I think! My mother and I both do!" Eliena looked at Kaddar. "Kaddar, if you're emperor can't you say that a marriage isn't necessary for peace?"

"In theory…" Kaddar replied.

"Why only in theory?" Eliena wanted to know.

"Well, people might expect me to uphold Ozorne's statement," Kaddar replied. "And who knows what trouble we could get into?"

"Oh." Eliena slumped. "But… what if you just did it? Would that be so bad?"

"What do you mean?" Kaddar asked.

"I mean don't worry about the consequences, just do it," Eliena replied. "Don't think and just act out on a limb. Not what everyone wants you to do but what you know is right." She suddenly looked diagonally to the floor and drew in a sharp breath. Her mouth still open, one side of her mouth turned up slightly and she looked up. "I should take my own advice." She pushed her hair behind her ears. "I say we just go to Ozorne when he's sleeping and cut him with the feather. He'd never know what hit him!"

"One problem," Lindhall said. "Ozorne is surrounded by guards and has magical shields." Eliena swore.

"What was it Rikash told Ozorne when Rikash gave Ozorne the feather?" Numair asked.

"Something about 'whenever you are in peril of life or throne, thrust this into your flesh and you'll fly away like you have steel wings and you'll never go to the realm of the Black God,'" Eliena replied. "Wait… peril of life or throne…" She looked at Numair, a smile playing at her lips. "Numair, is there anyway we can make Ozorne think he is very sick while using magic? I'm talking about to die sick."

"I suppose… why?" Numair questioned. "What's going on in that mind of yours."

Eliena smiled wickedly. "If Ozorne thinks disease is going to kill him, he'll use that feather." She paused. "And become a Stormwing."

Author's Note- yay! I updated this one! I'll write a few more chapters… this is going to come out more I think. I'm home almost all summer anyway! REVIEW.