Kiromir 55

Some of the other guys waited, charged up, and ready to use the rough light. Some of them were tapped, most of us were, but we’d manage.

“Complete the circuit. We’re the last ones out,” Another one said. Thanus shoved Nodak into the group and linked hands before we ripped away.

They took Niala, and I didn’t know what came next.

Every mote of energy drained from us when we arrived at the Songbird clans. I staggered, and so did Thanus. I used to take the rough light so easily, but then it felt like pulling teeth, harder than pulling teeth. The mana came without resistance, but its process just seemed complicated, clumsy, and exhausting.

“What happened to Niala and Gaff?” I bleated out to Thanus. We were safe enough now. We had a moment, and he told me everything.

“So, Gaff is with her?” I tried to convince myself I felt better about it.

“He’s got a decent head on his shoulders when he tries,” Thanus said, comforting me, but he hurt too. He looked awful, and I wasn’t sure how he still managed to stay upright.

Songbirds checked us as we came in. Our men dragged in, banged up, and leading the charge. Thanus needed rest and potentially a healer. Wearily, his eyes kept losing focus as blood trailed down his shirt. It smelled like his.

The songbirds had magic that could protect us, and we needed it more than ever.

Thanus started stumbling, weak on his feet. I could do little else but take one of his thick arms over my shoulder and leverage his body weight.

“Tan?” I asked him. He looked at me with a weak nod.

“Niala will be okay,” He breathed, but I didn’t know if he believed it.

They took our phones at the gates, one by one destroying them, and we had our caravans incoming. So we texted them hastily to destroy their phones, get new ones while I stayed outside the gates, praying for contact. I sat with the guards there, looking over the list they’d taken in. I noticed so many missing, but I accounted for them, one text after another. My phone grew lower and lower on battery as I made calls and orchestrated the influx. Hesitantly, I thought we’d made it out unscathed, save for Niala and Gaff. My stomach turned inside out, and I tried to keep myself distracted.

Night slipped up on us, the outside world cooling, and my phone went off, buzzing once. A text from Gaffriel lit my screen.

Rolyn with feds traitor. Niala alive. Will meet at your legend.

This confirmed my suspicions. My mother had been behind it. From this, I knew Niala was alive, and because I got this message, it meant Gaff was, too. Bless that stupid carrot.

“Will meet at my legend?” I puzzled. Did they mean point pleasant? Of the six or seven places that could be, I had an idea of the top three. Surely he wouldn’t pick Point Pleasant. Also, and the thought scared me that this message might not be from Gaff.

“Will come when safe. No more phones,” I texted, then handed my phone to the guard. The Songbird guard kindly crushed the phone under his foot. His eyes reflected the profound empathy he had for me then, but I knew that my girl was okay, and he knew Niala. All the Songbirds did.

Niala loved the songbirds. They held the last of our true magic. They kept secrets for laying wards and casting spells to keep a barrier of some kind up over their village. We could fly free here, even encouraged to have our wings out. I did so out of instinct, Thanus too. Broken feathers and blood littered Thanus’s ragged wings; he’d been shot.

“Mir. Those were humans shooting at us,” He spoke to me in disbelief.

“Could have been the feds. I got a cryptic message from Gaf. Rolyn Feds traitor.”

Thanus nodded.

“The flock, then family,” I told him, resolute as I felt the barriers of the Songbird’s magic drop and readied myself to convene with their elders and chieftain.

Our clan put so little stock in station that I forgot my status often. I delegated, managed the finances, planned our missions. I slid into the role so easily. So when it came time to meet with Sorrin, the songbird chieftain, I did so with practiced grace and a short bow.

His wisened face looked young for his years, maybe only fifty or so in appearance. His long greying dark locks and high cheekbones cultivated an elegance about his face. All this, ripped apart by eyes so bright green that even when his mana petered low, they appeared to glow. He had powers that we Wanderers would only ever hope to have, and so many of our girls longed to come here. Their magic ran strong, but they jealously guarded it.

“We’ve only gotten a bit of information, but what’s happened?” Sorrin’s eyes locked to mine. He had every right to be because he knew the severity of the situation. I had called protocols pending more information and that the Sentinels, Grells, and maybe Horizons could not be trusted.

“My men were sent out on a federal mission and were accosted by sentinel soldiers. We received word back that my mother was involved. She played her hand today because she’s desperate to rekindle the Skysinger and Soulstar names. Her breeding practices have been-“ he interrupted me.

“Barbaric, frankly. We’ve said nothing because the Sentinels do not offer much to our people. They do not value our magic. They value strength and body,” Sorin said as he led me back to his home.

I had chosen the barracks, our military base, because it reminded me of the songbirds. They had small homes stretched out within woods and fields. Though, they had no trade and skill of their own, save for the magic they traded out with the other clans. We had paid them dearly for the small protections we had on the base. It’s why we could fly effortlessly through the town at night. They used Niala’s oblivion as inspiration for it. She’d helped us so much, saved us in so many ways, but she’d never be one of us. The Songbirds also produced some of the best healers. They were solvent in their own right, but they held fast to stronger traditions than we did.

“We’ve sent a team out to your compound already. The elders are being brought out within the hours,” He promised.

“You didn’t have to do that,” I told him, grateful because our plan depended on us having enough energy back to do rough light to get them.

“We did. Our elders are our history. When they’re gone, we have nothing left.” Sorin tented his fingers, looking serious.

“We would have gone after them,” I insisted.

“You and yours are under lockdown until we get to the bottom of this,” Sorin said, lifting his chin as if we would fight them. They had done so much for us already that I couldn’t argue.

“That’s fair. Thank you. We’re grateful,” I assured him.

He nodded and let me into his quarters. We resisted pomp, but he had nice enough living quarters for me to rest in while we spoke.

“They took Niala and Gaff.” I didn’t know what else I could say.

“If it was just Niala, you know there wouldn’t be much we could do,” He spoke cautiously, and I closed my eyes. It always threw me that no matter what I did, they labeled her an outsider. I gave Niala my name. I adopted her in full right. She was one of us, a child of Cerrai like any of us, but because she was not Wildling, she was not part of our creed.

“But, they did take Gaffriel, are you certain?” Venom seethed in Sorin’s voice.

“One-hundred percent.” I caught the edge in Sorin’s voice. He didn’t have as big of a heart for Gaff as he did for Niala.

“For this, we can intervene. His family is known for having many strong children, and it would be a shame to lose such proficient blood, would it not?” Sorin asked, raising a brow.

I thought about it for a second and agreed—grateful.

“Gaff had his fires already, right?” Sorin asked, and I nodded.

“Flames,” I told him.

“Niala?”

“She’s only had them a few days. We call it the rending fire; it’s black.” My voice went quiet.

Sorin raised his brows in a sharp quirk.

“By any chance… I know the two grew up together, but are they…?” Sorin chanced.

I winced a little and nodded. Sorin knew my reasoning; Gaff wasn’t my first choice, not for Niala. I wanted her with someone stronger and better positioned… But as far as wildlings went, Gaff had our spirit in spades.

“Their fires are compatible. I couldn’t stop Gaffriel from checking. One of my other boys tried her on for size and found it quite unpleasant,” I snorted.

“I’d imagine so. Is he okay?”

“Yeah, scratched a little. But Krell knew what he was doing enough to keep her from shredding him up. He almost exclusively chases healers.” I blanched a little.

Sorin nodded sagely. “So, Rolyn…” He tried to get me to focus. My mind went all over the place.

“All I have is the text to go on, and judging by the fact that we had humans, certain they were government, firing on us as we left, that something didn’t go as she planned,” I grumbled.

“Anything else?”

“Sentinels took Niala. I have witnesses of that. When they took rough light back, their vehicle was rigged with explosives.”

“That’s definitely not good.”

Sorin had his own information to share once he’d heard me out. Yes, Rolyn had been dealing with humans. Most of the clans did to some extent, but she’d played her hand openly. Rumor was that when they did the autopsy on William Syllivan’s body, they were desperate to figure out the weapon that did that, and Rolyn made some very rushed last-minute decisions. Prim, Niala’s friend, had been allowed into the inner workings of everything because of her healing fires, and they wanted her magic. Prim didn’t want to, especially not when Niala would be the target and not when it would be for breeding.

Nausea rolled over me. I rested my head in my hands.

“Rolyn acted a little faster than we thought, though. Anything set her off?”

“She spiked up Niala’s oblivion and said some things that I think she would have rather not said out loud… She also was not exactly happy in whom I had joined as my bondmate.” I told him. Sorin was a good man, a kind man, and his head tilted a little.

“Jehanni?” He guessed. I nodded.

“Kiromir. She’s known for a long time and was putting a ton of time and money into Revik finding someone and what she did to him broke him. She couldn’t stand not being the one to cast the dice of fate.”

At the mention of Revik, I turned my head up. “Revik?”

“Kiromir. I think there’s a lot we need to talk about, and maybe your bondmate should hear too,” He said, and I swallowed hard. I had left Thanus near the entrance, him resting on the ground with Krell and the others. I swore I’d console him later.

“If it needs Thanus, can it wait until tomorrow?”

Sorin smiled, “Sure, first thing in the morning. Get your tribe settled. We saw that one coming. I’m glad you found one another.”

I left Sorin’s home with more anger in me than I’d ever had in my entire life, and I knew that nothing would fix that.

Housing became a big concern. Over three hundred of us were in the Wanderers and nowhere to sleep by the time they all got there. I had to focus on getting anything we could together. We lost most of the campers, and from the sad faces, I knew that many people lost their entire lives in those things. All our best memories rode in those things.