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  Chapter 5

  Liselle woke up in the barn once more. As she sat up, the world tilted and rolled. She groaned and put her head in her hands. After a moment, she focused enough to look around. Daylight snuck in around the barn doors. She inhaled deeply and rose to her feet. It took a moment, but she steadied herself and walked to the door.

  The sun was like a hammer hitting her head as she peered outside. Closing her eyes, she leaned against the edge of the doorframe until a shadow crossed over. The afternoon thunderstorms were gathering and a cloud had just covered the sun.

  Liselle staggered toward the house, still squinting. Flowers turned toward her, concerned for her well-being. There were no sounds in the house as she made her way to the dining room to find Tathan resting his head on crossed arms. Food was on the table around him.

  At first, Liselle went for the food, eager to fill her belly, but she paused to look closer at Tathan. “Tathan? . . .”

  His head shot up as he looked around, bleary eyed. “Huh?” He focused on Liselle. “Oh, you’re awake. You’ll be starving.” He dished up a plate for her with twice as much food as she would normally take.

  It felt as though she could gobble all of it and more.

  Tathan explained as she ate. “Casting a spell takes energy from around you, but it also takes energy from you. You need food and sleep to recover that energy. That was an extremely powerful spell you cast, so eat as much as you can.”

  “Phmmrfll?” she asked through a full mouth.

  “What?” His face twisted in confusion as he tried to interpret what she said.

  Food spit out everywhere as she burst into laughter at the odd look. She laughed and choked while trying to swallow, which only made her laugh harder. In a moment, he was laughing right along with her. It released stress and agony.

  After a few minutes, the laughter subsided and Liselle took a drink of cider. “You said the spell was powerful?”

  His eyebrows rose in surprise. “You don’t know? Magical fire with the ability to destroy is the domain of wizards in high towers.” Tathan drummed his fingers on the table as he considered his cousin. “I’ve never known anyone so young to cast a spell that strong. How did you learn it?”

  “Umm . . . I don’t know?” She shrugged.

  He leaned forward. “Did someone teach you?”

  “No.” A thought came to her. “Hey! You cast a spell that looked powerful. It was when those riders started attacking, right when they killed fa . . .” Tears streamed down her face again. She closed her eyes and waved her hands at the terrible image.

  Tathan grabbed her hands. “Here now. It’s over. No more.”

  She squeezed her cousin’s hands and composed herself. When he released her, she wiped the tears with the sleeve of her dress. Her breath came in gasps. “What was the spell you cast then?”

  “It wasn’t a spell.” He stood and moved to the window. “I found an item in a wizard’s tower one time, called a runeball. They’re powerful, rare and expensive.” He returned to his seat. “I’ve been saving it for a time when I would need it. I needed it last night.”

  “You found it?” She frowned.

  Tathan stared at her in guilty silence for a moment. “Well . . .”

  “You stole it? . . . Tathan!”

  “Not . . . exactly.”

  Arms crossed, she glared at him from across the table.

  “The wizard was already dead and he didn’t need it anymore. So it wasn’t stealing.” He seemed satisfied with his explanation.

  “Really . . .” Liselle narrowed her eyes. “And how did the wizard die?”

  The look on his face was even guiltier. “Well . . . He sort of died from a sword through his heart . . .” Tathan looked anywhere but at her.

  “Was it your sword that went through his heart?”

  He sighed. He seemed to do that a lot. “Yes. He had been trying to have me killed for a while, so I killed him instead.”

  “Why was he trying to kill you?”

  He glared. “You ask way too many questions, Cousin.”

  She didn’t respond other than to raise her eyebrows.

  Tathan ran a hand over his face. “Fine. He was trying to have me killed because I stole a few things from him.”

  Her mouth opened and closed as she tried to find something to say.

  “Here’s the thing Liselle, I’m not a great person. I’m a rogue, a thief and a killer. I’m not a bad guy though.” Tathan waited for a response other than Liselle’s horrified stare. He finally stuttered, “I . . . I don’t know how to explain it.”

  She set her jaw and crossed her arms. “Try.”

  He stared at his hands with a stubborn expression.

  “You came here and killed thirty warriors. You used a magical object to destroy half of them, and then jumped around killing the rest while moving faster than anyone I’ve ever seen.” She pounded a fist on the table. “You tell me of how terrible the world is and how bad you are. I want to trust you because you’re my cousin and the only family I have, but can I? Can I trust you Tathan?”

  He slashed his hand through the air. “Yes. No matter what else I’ve done in my life, I will do everything in my power to keep you safe.”

  Liselle chewed on a piece of bread as they sat in silence. After a bit, she asked, “So what do we do now, Tathan? Where do we go from here?”

  “I take it you don’t want to stay?”

  Tears welled as she shook her head no.

  He nodded. “I didn’t think you would. It wouldn’t be safe. One of the scouts got away. More will come in a few days.”

  “Who are they? Why did they attack our house? I don’t understand, Tathan!” The last came out as a plaintive shout.

  “I know, I know. Peace, Cousin. I’ll explain.” Tathan took her hand back to squeeze it. When she was calm again, he continued, “They’re from the Empire of Iynath. Emperor Kravka has a goal of conquering the world.”

  “I heard of Iynath the last time we were in Rothton. It was years ago. The townsfolk were talking about the Empire taking over the world. I didn’t think the talk was serious.” Trepidation crossed her features. “Rothton . . .”

  Tathan finished the sentence for her. “. . . has most likely been conquered. Desert warriors don’t normally kill everyone like they tried here. The emperor wants people to continue to work in order to provide for his armies. I understand he’s brilliant. He’s violent and terrible, but brilliant nonetheless.”

  “So do we go to Rothton or somewhere else? You said you came from the west, right?”

  Tathan picked through a bowl of pine nuts. “We don’t want to go to Rothton or beyond. They’re running war in that direction and we wouldn’t fare well. Plus the scout will have made a report and they’ll be looking for us.”

  “All right, not Rothton, but did you come from the west or not?”

  “I did come from the west, but it wouldn’t be wise to go that way. There are . . . people who don’t like me. It’s not pleasant in that direction either, for reasons I won’t get into.”

  “So we can’t go to Rothton or to the west. There’s no other way to leave the valley unless we want to climb over mountain ranges, which I do not want to do.”

  “We could take the road to the north.” Tathan tossed some pine nuts into his mouth.

  Liselle frowned. “There’s no road to the north.”

  He gave a sly grin. “Well . . . It’s hard to find. The road is ancient from what little I know. It goes through the mountains to the Willden Forest. I think that’s the only way we can go if you don’t want to hike over mountain ranges.”

  Her eyes narrowed as she leaned forward in her chair. “The Willden Forest is haunted and has countless other dangers. We stand a better chance of living if we go through Rothton or to the west.” Liselle sank into her chair, hugging herself. “I’m scared, Tathan. I wanted to exp
lore the world, but it sounds like every path ends in death, not adventure.”

  He tried to comfort her. “It’s true that death will be looking for us and it will be difficult to avoid in spite of our best efforts.”

  Liselle stared at him. “That makes me feel worse, Cousin.”

  Tathan stretched his legs under the table. “It’s best you be prepared for death. That way when you don’t die, it’ll be a nice surprise.”

  “Oh . . . wow . . . yeah. Don’t ever take up a job inspiring people, Tathan. You’re terrible at it.” She rolled her eyes. “So we’re going to die no matter what we do?”

  “No . . . Not like that.” He struggled with how to make his point. “If you’re afraid of death, it paralyzes you, seeking you out. Know it’s possible. Do your best to live. Then you stand a chance.”

  Liselle stood. “You have a very dark mind, Cousin. I will expect to survive and leave it at that.” She grabbed some meat and cheese, stuffed them in between two slices of the bread, and walked outside, ignoring the bloodstains still on the wall of the main room.

  Tathan followed. “I’ve packed some clothes for myself and food for us both. I kept four of the horses.” He pointed at them. “We’ll ride two and use two for packhorses, though the warriors would kill us for using their warhorses in such a manner.”

  “Wouldn’t the warriors kill us anyway?”

  “Exactly my point.” He grinned. “I didn’t pack anything of yours, but I’d suggest traveling light and ready for rough terrain.”

  “We’re really going to do this aren’t we, Tathan?” She looked at him, steeling herself for the hard road ahead.

  “Yes, Cousin. We really are.”