Twenty-Five

Safire strode across the uncovered walkway leading to the empress’s receiving room. She could see the grid-like streets of Axis below her—so unlike the twisting roads and alleys of Firgaard. Another difference between Axis and Firgaard: the sun didn’t beat relentlessly down on her here. Instead, the afternoon was cool and damp; and even from this high up in the citadel, she could taste and smell the sea.

As soon as she and Spark returned, Safire requested an urgent meeting with Leandra. The empress, she’d been informed, would receive her midafternoon.

It was midafternoon now as Safire followed her armed Lumina escorts through the citadel and its many walkways. As they approached a set of massive teak doors, carved with seascapes—waves and sails and scaly-finned creatures—Safire’s skin prickled with a familiar sensation.

Someone was watching her.

It was the same sensation she’d felt back in Firgaard, while trying to catch the Death Dancer. Her footsteps slowed. But when she turned to look, there were only her escorts and a handful of guards standing at attention down this hall, each of them ignoring her.

As the Lumina soldiers announced themselves, Safire shook off the feeling.

The doors opened and an attendant looked out—a young woman with auburn hair pulled tight in a bun. She took the folded summons from Safire’s escorts and, after scanning its contents, wordlessly let Safire in.

The room beyond was perfectly round and brightly lit by shafts of sunlight coming through the windows that climbed to the ceiling. At the center of the room, bathed in light, sat the empress at her desk, her hand moving furiously as she inked something on the parchment before her.

For such a sterile room, it smelled strangely like brine.

Safire’s gaze lingered on the large sword hanging on the wall behind the empress’s desk. The steel was thick, the edge thin and razor-sharp. The plaque beneath it read: The Severer.

The severer of what? she wondered.

“Good day, Safire,” said Leandra without looking up. “Please take a seat.” She motioned to the chair on the other side of her desk. It seemed to be fashioned from the vertebrae of a very large mammal—a whale, Safire thought—and cushioned with velvet. Hesitantly, Safire sat.

She waited for the empress to finish, looking from window to window. In the west, the sea shone silver. To the north, looming above Axis, a white mist was collecting in the scarps high above the city. It made Safire think of something Eris said, back on Dax’s ship: She’ll take me up to the immortal scarps and dispose of me—like she does with everyone she hates most.

Were those the scarps Eris spoke of?

“I apologize for not being able to see you immediately.” The empress sprinkled sand across what she’d written, then gently blew on the ink. “As I’m sure you can imagine, I have a great many questions for you.”

Safire nodded. It was why she was here—to tell the empress what she knew and hopefully get some answers in return. Answers that might help her track down Eris.

But there was something she wanted to address first. “I wonder, Empress, if it’s necessary to keep our dragons muzzled and chained.”

Setting aside her letter, the empress leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms as she studied Safire. “You’re displeased with the arrangement?”

The empress’s cool tone made Safire’s skin prickle with warning. “It . . . surprised me. In Firgaard, we let our dragons roam freely. They fly where they want and come when we call. We don’t lock them up.”

The empress was silent a moment before responding. “I must apologize, then. The people of the Star Isles are not well acquainted with dragons. The stories we’ve heard have made me cautious. Tell me: is it true that a dragon burned down half of Firgaard not so very long ago?”

Safire sat up straighter. “Well, yes, that’s true. But—”

“Didn’t that same dragon nearly kill your cousin?”

Safire blinked. “Um. Yes, but Asha—”

“I have a responsibility to the Star Isles, Safire. Your people have a contentious history with dragons. That, combined with my own inexperience, leads me to err on the side of caution. Surely you can understand my position.”

Safire didn’t know what to say. Seeing it, the empress continued.

“While you and your dragons are guests in my home, I would ask that you accept the precautions I take. They are for the safety of the people of the Star Isles.” She tapped her lip with a single finger, then looked to the windows. “I can tell my soldiers to loosen the chains, however. Would that make you feel better?”

Safire swallowed. “I . . . suppose that’s fair.”

“And now can we move on to more pressing matters?”

Feeling scolded, Safire nodded.

“Good.” Leandra folded her hands on her desk. “Your king tells me that you’re . . . well acquainted with my fugitive.”

Safire blushed. Well acquainted? It was an interesting choice of words. What, exactly, did you tell her, Dax?

“As you know, my soldiers have been hunting this criminal for several years. Up until yesterday, we knew nothing other than her age. We didn’t even know what she looked like.” When she looked up, her gray eyes were calm as the sea. “How did you find her?”

Safire explained about the thefts in Firgaard. “I almost caught her. I was so close. But . . .” She paused. “This is going to sound strange, but she disappeared. Right in front of me.”

The empress’s eyes narrowed a little. But she nodded for Safire to continue. Safire told her the rest of it—being kidnapped by Eris and brought aboard Jemsin’s ship.

“The pirate Jemsin?” the empress interrupted suddenly. “Are you sure?”

Safire nodded. “She works for him.”

Suddenly, the mist coming down from the scarps blocked out the sunlight coming through the windows. The room grew cold.

“I see” was all the empress said.

Safire told her about the deal Jemsin made with Eris: her freedom in exchange for bringing the Namsara to him. She told her about being intercepted by Kor, then escaping him with Eris in tow.

“And that’s when you lost her.”

Safire nodded. She left out the parts where Eris saved her life—twice—as well as Eris’s account of the night the scrin burned. And also the part where Eris kissed her.

Heat bloomed in her at the memory.

“Do you have any idea where she might be now? Perhaps back on Jemsin’s ship?” She looked hopeful about this.

Safire shook her head. “I don’t think so. She knows the Namsara is in the Star Isles, and intends to hunt her down. It’s why—”

“Is the Namsara in the Star Isles?” the empress asked, leaning forward in her chair.

Safire glanced up, remembering suddenly that Asha had declined the empress’s invitation. She might see it as a slight, Asha visiting her islands but not visiting her. It might do more than offend her; it might sabotage the alliance forming between her and Dax—an alliance that meant salvation for the scrublands.

“Asha is”—Safire struggled to think of an explanation that wouldn’t offend her—“searching for someone. It’s of the utmost importance that she finds them, and only recently has her search taken her here, to these islands.” The next thing she said was a lie. “Dax only got word in Darmoor.”

Maybe Eris really is rubbing off on me. . . .

Leandra’s gray eyes remained fixed on her face. “Perhaps I can be of assistance in this search. Who is she looking for?”

That was the problem. They didn’t know who this maker was, only that a clue might be found at the scrin.

Which no longer existed.

“She’s looking for the owner of an artifact,” Safire explained. “A weapon called the Skyweaver’s knife.”

Abruptly, Leandra rose from her desk, walking toward one of the windows. The silence built, glistening around Safire. “The weapon your queen used to save her sister,” she finally murmured, as if suddenly a world away.

“Yes.” Safire frowned. “How did you know that?”

“I heard . . . rumors,” said the empress. “Roa confirmed them over dinner yesterday.” She glanced over her shoulder at Safire. “I confess: it was part of the reason for my invitation. I wanted to know if the rumors were true.”

“I went to warn Asha,” Safire went on. “But she wasn’t where she was supposed to be.” Safire stood. “This is why I need your help. Eris escaped me only yesterday, and—”

“Eris?” Still turned toward Safire, the empress’s mouth twisted, as if she’d tasted something sour. “Is that the fugitive’s name?”

Safire nodded.

Leandra said nothing for a moment, then turned back to the window. She stared hard into the distant hills, then nodded for Safire to go on. “Eris,” she murmured, as if testing the name on her tongue.

“She doesn’t know Asha’s precise location. I don’t think it’s possible she’s found her yet, but I’m certain she will find her—and soon.”

“You don’t want her getting to the Namsara before you do.” Leandra fisted her hand, pressing it to her lips. “Well. Neither do I.” Dropping her hand, she said, “I’ll send out soldiers to every village in the Star Isles. Starting today. If the Namsara is here, we’ll find her.”

Safire felt a weight lift from her. “Thank you. She has a dragon with her—a massive black dragon with a scar through one eye. He’s difficult to miss.”

Leandra nodded. “I’ll pass that information along. Now, if you could do me a favor and recatch my fugitive . . .”

Safire bowed her head. “Of course.”

“And if you think of anything else I should know, report it directly to me.” She motioned to her attendant—the young girl Safire had all but forgotten. “Will you please see King Dax’s commander out?”

The girl nodded, motioning for Safire to follow her.

“If there’s anything else I can do for you,” said Leandra, returning to the window, watching the mist from the scarps slowly descend on the city below, “please let my staff know.”

“Actually,” said Safire, halting halfway to the doors, then turning back, “there is one thing. I was hoping you could tell me anything you know about her that could help me track her down. Perhaps the village she grew up in, or if she has any—”

“I’ve already told you all I know about the fugitive,” said Leandra, looking south—the direction of the ruined scrin.

Safire could tell she was overstepping her bounds now. But if she was going to find Eris in these islands, she needed as much help as she could get.

“Then I wonder if I could speak to one of the pirates Dax captured?” she pressed. “Kor seems to know Eris fairly well. He might be able to give us more information. Is there someone who could show me to the prison where he’s being kept?”

“Kor and his crew have already been executed,” said Leandra, her voice cold. “We got the information we needed from them.”

Safire froze. Had she heard that correctly?

“Executed?” She breathed the word. “Without a trial?”

The empress didn’t turn as she said, “They’re pirates, Safire. They don’t get trials.”