Description: Arram is out for blood and Ozorne must die. Meanwhile Daine navigates a crumbling continent in order to rescue her teacher from himself.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. Everything belongs to Tamora Pierce.

Author's Note: In Of Pregnancy and Marriage I had a play with the full scope of Daine's powers, but I don't feel like I properly explored Numair's temper and power. I certainly had a brief play but I don't feel like I fully unleashed him. I hope it's equally as terrifying as it is awe-inspiring. Having never experienced an earthquake myself, I hope I got that somewhat accurate from video footage I've watched.

Chapter 15

Daine felt like she was falling through fog. Falling or flying? It was hard to tell. She knew for certain Arram had done something to her, and the young woman was going to throttle the dolt when she got her hands on him. How dare he send her away again?

– Daine, what are you doing? This is no time to sleep! – Badger's voice echoed in her head.

Arram spelled me and I can't wake up! She shouted in frustration.

The animal god grunted. – This is the only assistance I can grant you. –

Daine woke with a start to find herself lying on the deck of a boat. The sun had fully risen over the horizon, and it was looking to be another hot, sunny day. Kitten and Zek leapt onto her stomach eager to confirm she was all right. The young woman cuddled them both before getting to her feet to try and figure out where she was.

"You're awake sooner than I expected," Lindhall commented from the stern of a medium sail barge. "I thought Arram's spell would have put you under until we were halfway to Tortall. As it is, we're almost to the harbour."

The master's huge tortoise, Sunstone, ambled up informing her they were going on an adventure across something called an ocean.

"Why'd you leave him?" Daine demanded angrily. "I thought we were staying to help!"

Lindhall closed his eyes looking as if he'd aged a good ten years since she'd seen him last night. "Because if I stay, Arram's attention will be divided between his task and on keeping us safe. I would prefer he kept all his focus on staying alive and defeating his enemy."

"I want off," the young woman stormed to the side of the boat to gauge the depth of the water and speed of the current.

"Daine, Arram charged me with your safety," the elderly mage sighed. "I cannot, in good conscience, let you go."

"I wouldn't stand between me and what I want if I were you," she shot him a cold smile.

"Think for a second," Lindhall tapped the side of his temple. "Where will you go? Even I don't know where Arram will be."

"I'll find someone to guide me," Daine said absently listening for the People around her, grinning broadly when she felt a familiar presence.

"Please reconsider this reckless course of action," the mage implored. "I know you are worried about him, but what can you really do to help?"

"I think you'll find I'm more capable than people give me credit for," the young woman turned on the master, folding her arms and tilting her stubborn chin.

Lindhall shook his head in exasperation before he gasped, catching sight of something on the banks of the Zekoi. Daine smiled knowingly having felt the approach of Teeu and her boys although she had no idea how they'd gotten out of their cage.

The Mistress released us, Teeu explained. She felt that you would need help returning to the fight.

Lindhall crossed the barge to stand beside Daine. "There was a prophecy made the day the emperor took the throne," he spoke softly, almost fearfully. "It was said that hyenas would lead his doom to him. Ozorne almost had the entire species slaughtered for that very reason."

"What stopped him?" Daine growled. Only a heartless monster would kill such spectacular creatures.

"Ozorne's Chief Mage reminded him that hyenas are sacred to the Graveyard Hag," the elderly master looked down at her in consideration. "It seems the goddess is making her intentions known, and I would be a fool to ignore Her. Very well, I will let you off."

Deep-grey magic slowed the boat, drifting them closer to the bank until they stopped completely. Daine retrieved Zek from her shoulder who whistled sadly when she handed him to Lindhall.

You won't want to follow me into battle, she told the pygmy marmoset silently.

I promised to stay with you and free the mage, Zek argued.

Keep Lindhall safe for me, Daine stroked the tiny monkey tenderly before leaning forward to kiss his head.

"What is that hyena holding in its jaw?" Lindhall breathed in wonder.

Daine hadn't noticed at first, but Aranh and Iry were both carrying something in their mouths. Climbing up onto the railing, the young woman leapt onto the bank using the dry grass to pull herself up the steep side. Teeu greeted her while the boys dropped a bow and quiver at her feet, bowing their heads in submission.

The mistress thought you would need these, Teeu explained.

Daine lifted the bow, testing the string. It was one of the recurve bows the Carthakis favoured. The young woman would have preferred her own long bow, but she'd been itching to try one of these. Strapping the quiver to her back Daine felt more like herself than she had in weeks.

"Are those griffin fletched arrows from the armoury?" Lindhall asked, eyes squinting for a better look.

Daine pulled out one of the arrows and examined the brightly coloured feathers carefully. They certainly weren't goose feathers.

"Those are mage killers," Lindhall informed her gravely. "Griffin arrows never miss their target and cannot be fooled by illusions."

The young woman smiled grimly. The Graveyard Hag had armed her perfectly as one of her soldiers. She may as well join the fight like the goddess wanted if only to keep Arram from getting himself killed.

Replacing the arrow, Daine turned to Teeu, can you take me to Arram?

Kitten squawked and screeched irately from the boat.

"No Kit. You stay with Lindhall," the young woman called. "I can't carry you and we'll need to travel fast and light."

The dragonet chattered angrily, her scales turning a red hue, giving Daine a long lecture even though she didn't understand much of it.

"Good luck," Lindhall managed a smile even though his blue eyes were filled with worry. "We'll wait for you in the harbour for as long as we're able," he promised.

Come god-born. We must leave, Teeu said turning to leave.

With one last wave to Zek, Lindhall and a fuming Kitten, Daine jogged after the hyenas carrying the bow in her left hand.

The army of the dead had barely left the camps when they were met by a company of red robes led by Chioké. The mages rallied their nerves faster than the soldiers, but many still looked pale and shaken faced with a thousand corpses walking towards them.

"What is the meaning of this, Draper?" the Chief Mage spat scornfully.

"I have a message for Ozorne if you'd be good enough to point me in his direction," Arram replied conversationally.

Chioké sneered. "You snivelling, pathetic piece of gutter trash. How dare you call the emperor by name."

Arram merely smiled contemptuously and waited to see what the mages would do. Would they stall for time until reinforcements arrived or attack recklessly?

"I don't know how you ever managed to conjure such a ridiculous illusion," the Chief Mage continued in his usual pompous way. "But end it now and submit yourself for the proper punishment."

How like Chioké to miss the obvious and jump to entirely the wrong conclusion. "I'm afraid I won't be doing that. You see, I'm free of my confinement." The mage held up his hands turning them so they could all see. The red robes exchanged nervous glances while Chioké began to sweat. "Now, answer my question: where is Ozorne hiding?"

The Chief mage's mouth worked silently no longer sure how to handle the situation when Arram wasn't subdued. The tension built with neither side wanting to be the first to attack when a blast erupted from one of the red robes. A skeleton to Arram's left exploded, sending bones flying off in every direction. The other mages appeared to gain in confidence when they saw how easily it broke apart until the pieces trembled and began to reform before their eyes.

"Kill the mages," Arram commanded, his voice filled with quiet menace.

The dead charged. The front runners were quick to fall to fire and lightning blasts, but it dawned on the mages that they would soon be overrun by the superior numbers.

"Shield!" Chioké cried, edging towards the back of the group.

The red robes formed themselves into two lines with the rearmost mages creating a braided defensive shield while the forward mages continued to blast the enemy with fire. The skeletons collided with the shield, some of them shattering on impact while the rest clawed ineffectually at it. The red robes were learning quickly that the skeletons couldn't reform if they incinerated or melted part of it, but it cost the mage more of their Gift.

Arram, losing patience with this show of defiance, raised a hand above his head and called on the silver sparkling Gift. Overhead the sky began to darken with thunderclouds until a bolt of lightning flashed and struck the shield, destroying it with a single blow. Red robes were thrown in all directions by the resulting explosion, quickly scrabbling to their feet. That was enough for most of them who turned and fled. Arram didn't need to command his army to chase after them, they did that by themselves.

In the confusion he'd lost sight of Chioké but now the mage spotted him retreating towards the palace and gave chase. Of all Ozorne's allies, his Chief Mage was the one Arram hated the most. He was a cruel slave master and a dreadful advisor. While the emperor's fall from grace couldn't be blamed entirely on his Chief Mage, he was certainly an attributing factor.

Chioké had activated a speech spell and was talking into it rapidly while Arram used his long legs to close the distance between them. He was so focussed on his enemy, the mage missed an opportunistic red robe who shot a blast of fire at his face, narrowly missing and sending him crashing to the floor. Arram would have taken a fire blast directly to the chest had he not erected a shield in time. Divine power had gone to his head and the mage wasn't being careful. It did him no good to throw his life away before he'd had a chance to locate Ozorne.

The red robe threw another fire blast at him which Arram extinguished with ease. Silver lightning forked from his fingers incinerating the enemy mage, turning him to ash. Chioké was getting away as Arram rolled back to his feet and gave chase. Using his silver sparkling Gift, the mage muttered a spell opening a trench, cutting off his enemy's retreat.

"You think you can defeat me?" Chioké shrieked, turning to face the younger mage. "You might have power Draper, but you never possessed the skill to do anything useful with –"

Lightning arced down from the sky to incinerate the Chief Mage before he could finish his sentence.

"I learned," Arram muttered darkly.

Taking a deep breath, he transformed into a black hawk and leapt into the sky, beating his wings hard to gain height. More mages were joining the fight, thankfully the dead were keeping them busy while Arram soared overhead hunting for his prey. In the distance, the mage saw the glint of steel reflected in the sunlight and spotted the circle of Stormwings. Rikash would be fighting Jokhun for control of the flock. Arram silently wished the Immortal luck as he continued his search.

There was no sign of Ozorne in the palace grounds when the mage landed beside the emperor's chambers. He tore through them searching every room, but Ozorne was long gone. Frustration mixed with rage until Arram screamed, cracks spreading out from his feet along the floor and up the walls. Elegant golden fixtures and beautiful murals crumbled down smashing chairs, tables, and sofas. Silver sparkling magic pulsed out of the mage going deep into the foundations to shatter the insignificant mortal spells that prevented the Gift from being used in the cells beneath the emperor's rooms, but Arram didn't stop there. The magic was like an all-consuming wildfire as it spread out collapsing pillars and crumbling towers almost with a mind of its own. His silver sparkling Gift was going deeper and deeper into the earth until it reached the tectonic plate which Carthak rested on. The fault lines were old and had been sealed up by mages centuries ago but the silver sparkling magic wove its way between the cracks breaking them open once more allowing magma to rise up through the lithosphere.

A low rumble sounded beneath Arram's feet, breaking his concentration. Blinking his eyes, he looked at the destruction all around him as another boom sounded below. Now, no matter where Ozorne tried to hide, if the mage didn't find him, the land would devour him whole. Transforming into a hawk once more Arram soared into the air to continue his hunt.

The hyenas led Daine through the capital city searching for Arram's scent. The streets were oddly empty for this time of day. They should be full of people going about their daily lives but all the shutters had been pulled closed. The sound of screaming had Daine raising her bow when a man burst out of an alleyway barely sparing the girl and hyenas a second look before he continued his mad dash.

What was that about do you s'pose? Daine frowned.

Good smells, Iry licked his lips, laughing.

From down the alleyway the man had appeared came the sound of ethereal laugher. The young woman raised her bow but faltered when a group of small skeletons and rotting corpses ran out kicking a ball to each other. What in the Black God's name…?

Can we eat them? Aranh bared his teeth.

Teeu rounded on the young male and nipped his ear. The Mistress would have your hide, the boss female growled. This is Her doing.

Aranh yelped and recoiled from his mother.

There is another magic on them, Iry argued.

"Arram," Daine gasped. "This is Arram's doing!"

The young woman watched the dead children continue their game down the street in stunned fascination. It was sort of sweet in a creepy kind of way. She hadn't really known what to expect from today but that wasn't it. Overhead the skies were growing dark, but these didn't look like natural storm clouds. A bolt of lightning flashed in the distance but there was no accompanying sound of thunder.

"I think Arram's over in that direction," Daine pointed.

The young woman was glad of the hyena's company even if they set a relentless pace through the winding streets. It was a jog rather than a run, but Daine still found herself tiring quickly as she sweat through all her clothing. There wasn't a drop of water in any of the fountains they passed, and the young woman regretted not bringing a water flask. Even the hyenas were beginning to pant. A low rumble had all four of them skidding to a halt while they tried to locate the source of the sound.

"That didn't come from the sky," Daine said, noticing that the dark clouds had vanished.

Aranh and Iry began to whimper while Teeu sniffed at the dirt. Another rumble sounded, only louder this time, coming from the ground itself. Daine had heard of earth-shakes, but she'd never experienced one firsthand and found she didn't want to. A boom thundered and the earth began to shake knocking the young woman to the floor. People were screaming and crying from inside their homes as Daine tucked herself into a ball, covering her head with her arms while the sounds of glass breaking, and pots smashing could be heard all around. Teeu, Aranh and Iry cowered with her until the quake stopped after ten seconds. It felt longer. With trembling legs, the young woman got back to her feet, eyes wide with fear. The ground was meant to stay in one place not move about!

We should keep going, Teeu nipped at both boys' legs to get them moving.

The pack had barely crossed the street when another boom erupted followed by a terrible splintering sound. Without warning a fissure opened by Iry's paws causing the hyena to shriek and jump back. The crack widened until the building beside it was swallowed up by the earth. Daine cried out in alarm as homes and shops disappeared one by one sending up huge clouds of dust.

She ran.

There wasn't one particular direction the young woman headed in. All Daine knew was that she had to get away. Adrenaline took over and whatever exhaustion she'd felt before was smothered by pure terror. Running down another street a solid furry body hit Daine sending her crashing to the floor.

Foolish pup! Teeu snapped. The pack stays together!

"I'm sorry," she panted unable to stop herself from shaking, or was that the ground again?

We should cross the river. It will be safer, Teeu decided. There are fewer stone dens to fall on us.

The young woman didn't question the boss female, merely followed behind with the boys. Was this Arram's doing too or had the gods finally decided to act? They reached the river where Daine quickly learned that hyenas were excellent swimmers. She'd have to ask Arram or Lindhall later if they were related to dogs in some way. The young woman sent the crocodiles away who were hoping for a meal with an apology. The giant lizards weren't happy but agreed not to eat the hyenas.

Teeu had been correct when they reached the opposite bank: tents lay collapsed on the ground but there were no large buildings to fall on them. The group found the barracks which the royal barge had sailed past when the Tortallans first arrived in Carthak, but where were all the soldiers? There should have been hundreds of them. If they'd boarded their vessels already to invade Tortall, shouldn't they have packed up their tents and provisions?

Your mage was here, Teeu sniffed with her powerful nose.

It's the same smells that were on the bone-walkers, Iry agreed.

Had Arram killed everyone? But then there would be bodies... Daine's eyes widened as it hit her just what the mage must have done. She wasn't sure whether to be impressed or horrified, but without an army, Ozorne wouldn't be able to invade her home or kill her friends.

The group made their way through the eerily quiet barracks having to stop twice for earth-shakes. The sound of distant screams and falling buildings accompanied every quake which were steadily becoming longer and more violent. Daine just wanted to find Arram. She'd feel much safer with the mage at her side than dealing with the repercussions of his magic alone.

They had almost reached the palace, which now lay in ruins, when the hyenas stopped and began to circle, sniffing all around.

"What's the matter?"

The scent is gone, Aranh complained, widening his search.

"Gone?" Daine's blood ran cold. Was she too late? Had Arram already been killed?

It stops here, Iry continued to circle the same spot.

No, Teeu tilted her head to sniff at the air before climbing on her son's back. It goes up.

Daine sighed. "He took hawk-shape." Now how was she supposed to find her wayward teacher?

We could always hunt his prey, Teeu suggested with a laugh.

The hungry one, Iry and Aranh chorused.

"Who's the hungry one?" the young woman asked.

He wants to eat the world. He hates our kind but also fears us. We have a score to settle with that one, Teeu snarled.

"Ozorne," Daine growled. "You can find his scent?"

We know that one's scent, Teeu agreed. We can track him.

"Then let's –"

Three red robed mages burst out from behind a crumbling wall chased by armed corpses from the Red Legion and several skeletons. The mages were blasting them with fire which only seemed to slow the dead. Two of the skeletons separated from the group to stare at Daine and the hyenas with their sightless eyes. The young woman aimed her bow at the lead skeleton not sure what arrows would do against it, but they didn't charge.

"Why aren't they attacking us like the mages?" Daine muttered, confused.

We belong to the Mistress, Aranh responded.

So long as you stay with us, you'll be safe, Iry explained.

A fire blast incinerated the rightmost skeleton. The mages had returned. The other skeleton charged but it didn't stand a chance against mage fire: bones charred until they turned to dust. The red robes were starting to look drained, sweating and panting profusely.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" the lead mage asked.

"Why are those animals out of their cages?" a second demanded.

"I'd suggest you focus on your own problems than worry about us," Daine responded, fingering her bowstring.

The mages exchanged a look before three fire blasts exploded towards the girl and hyenas. Daine rolled out of the way feeling the air singe at her back and fired her arrow. It took the first mage through the throat as he choked once before he collapsed. Teeu and Iry were circling and snarling, baring their huge teeth but Aranh had been caught in magical vines which continued to twist and constrict around him.

The two remaining mages focused their attention on Daine, sending blast after blast in her direction. She'd dealt with mages before in Dunlath where she'd had a forest to hide in, but here she was out in the open with nothing for cover. A well-aimed blast knocked the young woman to the floor. Looking up she saw one of the red robes raise their hand to incinerate her when Teeu jumped and clamped her powerful jaws around the arm. Iry was keeping the other mage busy while Daine notched an arrow and fired, shooting the enemy through the chest. The magical vines around Aranh disappeared when the red robe fell.

A howl from Teeu had Daine notching another arrow, hitting her attacker in the shoulder before he could deal the killing blow. A final arrow through the eye killed the mage as the young woman rushed to the hyena's side. The mage had scorched the female hyena on the right side of her face, blinding the eye.

"Hold still," Daine whispered reaching for her magic, relying solely on instinct to remove the heat from the burn and soothe the skin. When the young woman opened her eyes the scorch marks were gone, leaving pink skin in its place. "I'm sorry… I don't know how to heal eyes."

I'll be fine, Teeu sneezed and stood. My nose still works. Let's continue the hunt.