Rise of the Faire-Amanti (The Ascendant Series Book 3) (15 page)

Our child will be raised by parents who stood up for what was right and did what needed to be done
, she vowed.

Reaching up with one hand, he took hers and clasped it.
I love you so much, Kyr
.

I know.

I’m sorry for being an idiot.

Well, that covers all manner of sins. But I accept. I know you won’t keep things from me anymore.

If I do, will you punish me in bed again?

That made her laugh.
Something tells me that wasn’t such a terrible punishment.

Oh, I don’t know…

Their humor faded as they both spotted possible trouble ahead. They could barely make out the individual outlines of about ten different people. Behind the people rose enormous trees.

Ty checked the transport’s gauges and determined that they were nearly at the border between the Owar and Luja megais. Had Vycor set up a perimeter there? If so, the Mynders would surely be more prepared for possible influencing after what he and Kyr had done at the other border.

I think we should turn around
, Ty thought, returning both hands to the steering mechanism.
Better secure yourself in a seat
.

Before she could move to do as he instructed, a voice entered their minds.
You have nothing to fear
, it assured them.
You’ve been expected
.

Ty caught Kyr’s gaze and saw the surprise there. They both knew that voice.

It was her best friend, Avana.

Chapter 17

Hearing Avana’s voice made Kyr’s heart rejoice. She had been worried about her friend ever since she left the palace to search for Ty. Knowing that Avana was alive and well made Kyr almost limp with relief.

Somehow it didn’t surprise her that Avana seemed to know exactly who they were. As a Divyner, she had mental abilities beyond the scope of most Alametrians’ understanding. It made Avana both brilliant and…unusual.

Kyr remembered the first time she met Avana when she was beginning her Earth lesson. It was the day they moved into their freshman dorm room together. Avana had used an entire moving crew, who offloaded a truck full of stuff that had taken up most of the cramped space they shared. Despite Kyr’s attempt to argue for a fair share of the room, Avana had charmed her into accepting things as they were. Kyr had known then that she would have her hands full, and Avana had lived up to that promise.

She had also dragged Kyr out of her shell, introducing her to new things and forcing her to socialize with people from all walks of life. Kyr realized now that Avana had been preparing her for her return to Alametria, where she hadn’t ever met people outside of her small portion of the palace.

Avana had also introduced her to Sem. The three of them had become virtually inseparable.

Sadness threatened to overwhelm her as memories ran through her mind. Ty brought the transport to a stop, so she forced her depressing thoughts to the back of her mind. She couldn’t deal with what she didn’t know. She needed to focus on Avana and why her best friend was standing at the border to greet them.

Once Ty cut the engine, he walked with her off the vessel. Kyr blinked as she watched all of the Luja bow with the thought of,
Welcome to our homeland, Ma’jah Kyr and Ra’jah Ty. We’re honored to have you here.

Thank you
, Kyr and Ty returned.

Kyr felt Ty’s surprise that they had used his new title. She supposed at least one of them had foreseen their pairing, however, so they knew he was the Faire-Amanti. For all she knew, it had been Avana herself who made the prediction.

As she and Ty got closer to Avana and her companions, she realized that everyone looked more subdued than their thoughts had led her to believe. No one was smiling. Avana, who was usually bedecked in bright, vibrant colors and wild accessories, was wearing a pair of dark pants and a long-sleeved shirt that blended into the tall forest behind them. Clearly, this megai wasn’t untouched by the upheaval at the palace, either.

Kyr hurried up to her friend and embraced her in a hard hug. “It’s wonderful to see you.”

“And you, Ma’jah,” Avana said.

No matter how close they were, she insisted on using Kyr’s title to address her. An array of feelings bled from Avana into Kyr as they hugged. She sensed Avana’s happiness over finding out she was alive combined with worry about the future. There was something else her friend wasn’t sharing, Kyr was sure of it.

I promise that all of your questions will be answered soon
, Avana thought as she pulled away.

“We must move from this location, Ra’jah,” said a tall male to Avana’s left. His gaze was on Ty. “Mynders have infiltrated the megai.”

Dread struck Kyr. She caught Ty’s gaze. They were all out in the open like sitting ducks. Sure, it was in a remote part of the megai, but Vycor’s Mynders were likely on their way.

“They’ve entered the Luja, Borll, and Rowe megais,” Avana informed them. “We had to resort to trickery to get to this part of the border undetected. But we’ll escape before they find us. I’ve foreseen it.”

Mild relief eased the tension in Kyr’s shoulders. Her stress level quickly escalated when the male Luja spoke again.

“You’ll have to abandon the transport,” he said, lifting a chin in the direction of the Wrym vessel. “Ever since your passage across the Owar bridge, the palace has outlawed travel by powered vehicles. They’re claiming it’s to protect the environment. They said the Rowe discovered high levels of something-or-other in the atmosphere. Utter bullshit, of course. Begging your pardon, Ma’jah.”

Kyr picked up Ty’s thoughts about this. Vycor knew how easy it was to smuggle people and goods across borders in a powered vehicle. He also knew that using a powered vehicle would get Ty and Kyr to the Vawn megai more quickly. He had outlawed them for those reasons, not the environment.

Another male who looked nearly identical to the first piped up, “Besides, every Mynder on the planet is on the lookout for this thing.”

Anxiety tightened around Kyr’s heart as she processed this new obstacle they had to overcome. She watched as Ty walked back to the transport and collected their things. By all accounts, he was taking this news in stride.

“Sill and Deny will take the transport and dispose of it,” Avana said as the group headed into the forest. “I trust them with my life, so you have nothing to fear there.”

Kyr had already scanned the group and knew Ty had, as well. None of them intended them harm. That only made her more uneasy for Sill and Deny, who were even then boarding the transport. She hoped they made it back safely.

It will be all right, Ma’jah
, Avana thought, looping her arm through Kyr’s as they entered the first grove of trees.

No one spoke as they headed towards whatever destination Avana had in mind. Kyr knew they were all moving as quietly as they could so they didn’t alert any Mynders who might be in the area. It was something of a relief to quiet the thoughts in her mind and focus on where they were going while keeping an eye out for signs of danger.

The Luja forests were renowned throughout the megais. The trees stretched taller and wider than anything Kyr had seen on any other planet. As a result, many of the Lujas made their homes up among the wide, sprawling branches. Special pipes made from the wood of the trees served as plumbing to and from the homes. Rope bridges spanned many of the trees, making it easier for Lujas to get from one place to the next without ever touching the ground. Since many of those bridges were sagging or broken, Kyr understood why they weren’t traveling that way. Apparently, this area of the megai wasn’t inhabited anymore.

Ty joined a couple of the Lujas in covering their tracks as they passed. A few times, a female Luja at the head of their group paused in thought, then directed them another way. It took Kyr until the third directional change to realize the female was receiving visions that told her where not to go.

Despite knowing about a Divyner’s abilities, this realization made her shiver.

It was with a lot of relief that they finally reached the encampment that Kyr determined was Avana’s base. This looked as abandoned as the rest of the forest they had traversed. There were no sounds outside of the trees creaking as the wind shifted their branches.

“This area was deserted years ago due to a tree devil infestation,” Avana shared with her in a voice that sounded unnaturally loud after such a long silence.

Kyr vaguely remembered learning about tree devils. They were something like rabid monkeys from Earth. Her gaze moved uncertainly up to the trio of small structures among the trees. The others in the group had headed to a rope ladder leading to the structures.

“Don’t worry,” Avana said, patting Kyr’s arm. “The creatures were eradicated a long time ago. There was nothing left for them to eat.”

Swallowing her concern, Kyr headed to the rope ladder. Before long, she was seated in one of the temporary shelters beside Ty and across from Avana with a green chemical fire between them. The others in the group had split up between the other structures. Kyr appreciated the privacy.

“Do you want anything to eat?” Avana asked, reaching into a pouch and pulling out a neeby fruit.

“No, thank you,” Kyr said. She couldn’t think about eating with the knot of stress churning in her stomach. “Avana, please tell us what’s troubling you. You know we can sense it.”

Avana’s shoulders slumped, but she nodded and returned the fruit to her pouch. “All right. I guess there’s no easy way to say this. Vycor has taken Madam Caelys hostage. We believe she’s being tortured for information.”

Kyr reached out and grasped Ty’s hand. Vycor was torturing the Great Divyner? The most esteemed female on the entire planet? A harmless woman who had lived longer than any Divyner in history?

In that moment, they both knew that there was no length too far for Vycor to go in his mad quest for power.

“I’m so sorry, Avana,” Kyr said, reaching out with her free hand and touching her friend’s arm. “Are you sure?”

Avana nodded. “We all saw it in the same vision. We believe Madam Caelys sent it to us. No one has heard from her since.”

Ty’s hand jumped slightly in Kyr’s. She knew he was thinking of the fact that both Sem and the Great Divyner had been silenced, at least in thought. Was it possibly something Vycor had learned to do? They didn’t know how the Advisor had come by his odd abilities. Who said they couldn’t evolve?

“We’ve been trying to plan a rescue attempt for days,” Avana said. Her eyes grew damp and she blinked to clear them. “But we just don’t have the skillset for it. On top of that, a number of Divyners have gone missing. Most of them are powerful females. Due to one eyewitness account, we think Mynders are gathering them for some purpose. As yet, no one has had a vision explaining why.”

“I can hazard a guess,” Ty said in a low voice. “Vycor wants to know the future. He wants to know if Kyr and I are really alive and on our way to face off with him. He wants to know if he’ll succeed in whatever he has planned.”

Kyr’s spine stiffened as she realized Ty was right. The Advisor was taking any possible advantage he could. If he got the Divyners to tell him the future, he could anticipate any plans she and Ty made to stop him.

“All destinies can be changed,” Avana said. Her voice was soft, telling Kyr there was more weighing on her.

“You might as well tell us what else is on your mind,” Kyr prodded.

Tears once again filled Avana’s eyes. This time, she let them fall. She moistened her lips and stared at the fire rather than meeting Kyr’s gaze. That alone sent a chill along Kyr’s spine.

“You’re right, of course,” Avana said. “Do you remember the vision I had just after you came to rescue us, Ra’jah?”

Ty nodded. Kyr remembered it, too. Ty had asked Avana if the vision related to their time on Earth. Avana had told him no.

“Well, my abilities tell me that now is the time to reveal that premonition.” She paused and took a deep breath, then dealt the blow. “In that vision, I foresaw Sem’s death.”

Chapter 18

Ty absorbed Kyr’s shock and allowed it to blend with his own. He welcomed the numbness. It kept the punch of pain over Avana’s words to a dull minimum.

“Why do your abilities tell you that you needed to tell us now?” he asked, keeping his tone carefully level. “Do you know for sure that it came true?”

Wiping at a tear, Avana shook her head. “I don’t know for sure, no. It’s hard to explain a Divyner’s instincts. Truth be told, my visions aren’t generally very accurate. I never would have said anything if my inner voice—and Kyr—hadn’t insisted.”

Kyr rubbed Avana’s arm in a gesture of comfort. “Can you tell us what happened in your vision?” she asked gently.

Ty was both grateful and horrified that she’d asked. He felt they had to know, of course. But if the vision had any plausibility, it would just support their fear that Sem was dead. That was a truth Ty wasn’t ready to face.

“It was a series of images,” Avana said, her gaze once again settling on the fire. “In each of them, Sem was suffering at the hands of Vycor.”

They all heard Kyr’s indrawn breath. Ty felt her second wave of shock. They were both thinking of his dream and Vycor’s claim that he had tortured Sem before killing him.

“The end was unclear,” Avana admitted. “But Vycor struck out in anger, and Sem died.”

Ty had no desire to poke around in Avana’s thoughts to see if he could get more clarity from her vision. He didn’t need to know for sure that her premonition paired up with his dream for him to be sufficiently rattled.

His gaze moved to Kyr, whose complexion had gone white as wax. He realized that her level of shock was more than he’d realized. Leaning closer to her, he kissed her forehead. Her skin felt cool to the touch. That made his fear over Avana’s vision pale in comparison.

“Avana, we’ll take that food now,” he said, reaching into his satchel and pulling out one of the vitamin packets Lore had given him. “Can you please get me a cup?”