The Healing Wars: Book II: Blue Fire (14 page)

“I’m sorry, it didn’t work.”

“It’s okay. I can hold it.”

I took his hand again and felt my way in. Thick blood, but no spots on his organs yet. He wouldn’t be comfortable, but he could indeed hold it until tonight. I just needed to have a plan to get rid of it by then.

“I’m sorry,” Onderaan said.

“We need to break into the foundry tonight.”

He shook his head. “It’s too dangerous. You’ll wait until Jeatar returns, like we planned.”

“Danello can’t wait that long.”

He sighed, compassion in his eyes, but no sign of giving in. “Wait for Jeatar.” He left the room, closing the door softly behind him.

Aylin looked at me, tears in her eyes. Danello was pain sick now, but it would be me in that bed
tomorrow. And I wouldn’t be getting out of it.

“We’ll fix this,” she said, her voice catching. “You’ll think of something.”

The only thing that came to me was taking the pain, knocking on the foundry door, and giving it all to Vyand.

“You rest,” I said, brushing the hair from Danello’s eyes. “I’ll be back later.”

We left Danello’s room. Neeme and Ellis were standing in the hall, arms folded, faces stern.

“What’s going on?” Neeme asked.

“What do you mean?” I said.

“Something is going on. Onderaan has been preoccupied and more secretive than usual. Jeatar is doing Saints-know-what. Siekte is furious and grumbling. You’ve stopped borrowing the uniforms, but you borrowed other things instead. You changed your looks. You go out all the time, but you three are never actually three anymore. Only two of you are seen each day, and it’s always a different two.”

I looked at Aylin. She shrugged.

“We’ve been sharing pain,” I said.

“You’ve been what?”

“I wasn’t able to shift all of Ellis’s pain into the soldier before he died. We need pynvium and
a Healer to get rid of what’s left, but there’s none available. We’ve been trying to figure out a way to get some. Until then, one of us holds it every day.”

They both looked confused. “Why do you share it?”

“Because shifted pain kills whoever carries it after a few days. By moving it around, we extend the amount of time we can carry it before it kills someone, but it gets worse every time I shift it. It’s really bad now.”

Now they both looked horrified. “That’s awful.”

“I know. And we need to go out again and find some pynvium somehow by tonight, so if you…”

They were ignoring me, whispering with their heads close together. Neeme frowned, but Ellis nodded. Finally she sighed, and they turned back to us.

“I’ll take it,” Ellis said. “That’ll give you another day, yes?”

I just gaped.

“It will,” said Aylin. “Thanks.”

“Are you sure?” I said.

“You saved me. Let me help you.”

“Me too,” Neeme added. “That’ll give you even more time.”

“Could you split it,” Ellis asked. “Give each of us
half so it isn’t as bad? Would that spread it out even longer?”

“It might. It would certainly make it easier on you.”

“What do we do?”

I took them into Danello’s room. He seemed surprised to see them, but he didn’t have the energy to do more than glance up. Neeme and Ellis looked less sure once they got a look at him. I picked up Danello’s hand and held my other out.

“Just give me your hand. Who wants to go first?” I should have given them one last chance to say no, but we needed them too badly.

Ellis put her hand in mine. “This is going to hurt, isn’t it?”

“It’ll feel a lot like when you got stabbed. Some of it’s the same pain.”

She grimaced, but nodded. “Do it.”

I
drew
from Danello and
pushed
into Ellis. She cried out and pulled away, but I kept hold of her. Neeme caught her shoulders and held her steady.

“Saints, that’s bad,” Ellis said, wrapping her arms around her middle.

Neeme licked her lips. “Um—”

“Oh no,” Ellis said, pushing her forward. “You’re not getting out of this.”

I held out my hand. Neeme grabbed it and closed her eyes. I
drew
, I
pushed,
she shrieked, then laughed uneasily.

“That pack leader really got what was coming to him if this is what he felt,” she said.

More deaths, more guilt, but I held my tongue. “Do you have rooms you can rest in?”

“Yes, in the other wing.” Ellis turned and headed slowly for the door. “We’ll be fine. You two—no, make that you
three
—go find pynvium and Healers so we don’t have to do this again.”

I looked at Danello, sitting up now, even if he did look tired.

“That’s sounds good to me,” he said.

“Except Aylin and I will go out. You stay here and rest. We’ll be back in a few hours with some kind of plan.” We were going into the foundry tonight, no matter what. If Vyand was still there, we’d figure out how to get past her when we had to.

Danello looked dubious.

“Don’t worry.”

“Can I worry?” Aylin asked.

“No.”

We left Danello and headed out to the street. I caught Aylin’s arm as we left the villa.

“We’re breaking in tonight,” I said.

“I had a feeling you were going to say that.”

“We’ll need help, though.”

“Ceun’s pack?”

“That’s what I was thinking.” There was enough in the foundry to tempt even the most cautious thieves, and if I could show them a way in and a workable plan, they might be willing to help for whatever they could carry out.

We hurried to the docks, no longer needing the map. With its gridlike streets, Baseer wasn’t that hard to get around in, really. Hardest part was getting through the crowds.

Several large ships were being unloaded as we got there. I wove between unloaders and the stuff they were unloading, holding my breath more than once from the smell. We reached the stone wall with the good view we’d been meeting Ceun at every day and jumped up on it. It was almost noon.

“What about Vyand?” Aylin asked.

“We’ll try Danello’s idea. Book passage tonight and hope she hears about it.”

“Pretty risky.”

“What choice do we have?”

“Stolen girl!”

We both jumped. Ceun was on the wall beside me. The boy was quiet as sunshine.

“You scared me.”

He grinned. “Saw Stew-Pot.”

My heart flipped. “Where? At the docks?”

“He and his pretty lady got on a boat yesterday afternoon.”

“They left
yesterday
?” Saints! We missed an entire night.

He nodded. “Tried to see you too, but you weren’t here.”

I was such a fool. It had never occurred to me to watch the foundry and see if Vyand left. Not that that would have helped much, since our seals didn’t work anymore. But it didn’t matter—she was gone! I hugged Ceun and he laughed.

“Ceun, I need your help tonight. Can you get your pack leader to meet me right away? I have an idea that will make you all rich.”

His eyes widened. “For that I bring you the whole pack.”

“I’ll need your help with something else.” I pulled out the small bag of coins Jeatar had given me. “Can you find me four or five iron boxes like the fishermen use to keep their flares dry?”

He grinned at the coins. “I can even get those without buying.”

“I’ll need them by tonight.”

“For the rich plan?”

“Exactly.”

“I’ll fetch Quenji and go shop. Wait here.”

I sat back as he raced off into the crowd.

“What are the boxes for?” Aylin asked, settling onto the wall next to me.

“Justice.”

I couldn’t wait to tell Danello. We had a foundry to break into.

T
he neighborhood with the boardinghouses was quiet and dark, with only about half the streetlamps lit. A few more would have been nice, since it would have made it that much harder to spot us in the dark above. A half-moon cast enough light to help us see, but it didn’t make it easy.

We’d sneaked out of the villa one at a time, and though the guards in the main house saw us, they must have been used to us leaving by now, because no one tried to stop us. Whether or not they told Onderaan we’d left was something I’d deal with when we got back.

If we got back.

Ceun arrived with Quenji, the new pack leader,
and another boy, Zee. Others in the pack had wanted to help, but we figured the more we had, the more likely we’d be caught. All of us carried empty sacks on our belts and backpacks with supplies.

We stood on the top landing in one of the boardinghouses closest to the aqueduct. The window was already open and just big enough for us to crawl through and climb up the outside of the building to the roof.

“Last chance to change your mind,” I said.

Ceun smiled. “We all go.”

Quenji ruffled his hair. “There’s lots of good stuff to steal in there. We’ll eat for a year.” He laughed. “We could eat for months just from the stories. People talk about you, Shifter, but we’ll have truth to tell, not gossip.”

I gaped. “You know who I am?”

He laughed again. “You’re a legend in the packs. You hurt the Undying. Stole prisoners from soldiers. Braved the inner gates just to spy on Stew-Pot. We help you, we become legends, too.”

Ceun and Zee grinned wide at that.

Aylin hid a laugh behind her hand, while Danello beamed. Me? A Baseeri legend? Saints, how sad must their lives be if
I
was the best thing they had to talk about.

“Okay. Time to climb.”

Quenji went out the window first, coils of rope slung diagonally across his chest. He crawled up the brick like a lizard, and a rope dropped down a minute later. Danello tugged on it a few times, then tied it around his chest up under his arms. He crawled up without too much effort.

The rope dropped back down.

“You next,” I told Aylin. She adjusted her backpack and reached for the rope.

“Maybe you should just try flying to the roof,” she teased. “Being a legend and all.”

“I could try pushing you out the window.”

She giggled and crawled out and up.

“We know you can’t fly,” said Ceun, so serious, for a moment I thought he meant it. “But we do think you can stop the Undying.”

My joyful mood vanished. “I hope so.”

The rope dropped again and I tied it under my arms. The windowsill was wide enough to stand on, and the too-colorful shutters nailed to the brick on both sides made easy handholds. It also helped that the boardinghouse hadn’t been built with much care. Brick corners stuck out, mortar had chipped away between bricks, both just enough for toes and fingers to wedge into.

Not that I had to climb far. I’d gone only a few feet when the rope tightened and Danello and Quenji hauled me up. Ceun was on the roof with us before they got the rope off me.

“How close are we to the aqueduct?” I asked, making my way to the edge of the roof. It hadn’t looked far from the street, but as Jeatar had said, it was hard to judge distance from down there.

“A good jump,” Danello said.

Quenji shook his head. “A bad jump.”

Bad indeed. The aqueduct was more even to the roof than it had looked, but not as close as we’d thought. We’d have to jump across three feet of space and land on four feet of aqueduct. In the dark.

Aylin leaned in close. “It might be easier to steal some more gate passes.”

“That won’t get us into the foundry, though. We have to go in from above.” I looked around the roof. We’d brought iron spikes to anchor into the aqueduct, but they’d pull right out of the wooden roof. The only other place to tie the rope was around the crenellations along the front and sides of the building. They looked more decorative than solid though.

Danello followed my gaze. “They’ll have to do.”

“They look like they’d break if we kicked them hard.”

“We’ll have people holding the ropes as well.”

No one volunteered to go first this time. I sighed and stepped forward. “I’ll go.”

“No, I’ll do it,” Danello said, then grinned. “I was just hoping I wouldn’t have to.”

Quenji tied the rope around one of the crenellations while Danello tied the other end around himself. The rest of us lined up along the rope and took hold.

“Here goes.” Danello backed up a few paces, then darted forward, leaping into the night. He landed on the aqueduct, stumbled, and dropped flat.

We all gasped, but Danello stood a moment later.

“I’m okay. I’m here.” He untied the rope and tossed it back.

Aylin went, landing lightly on her feet. She was the one who seemed to fly. I grabbed the rope.

Saint Saea, I could use a little of Aylin’s grace.

I jumped. Darkness swirled around me as I crested the empty space between the structures, then my toes found solid ground again. Strong arms caught me, halted my forward momentum.

“Thanks,” I mumbled into Danello’s chest, not wanting to let go just yet.

“Don’t worry, I won’t let you fall.”

Ceun climbed up and stood at the edge of the roof, working his arms and shoulders, rubbing under his arms. We waited on the aqueduct, hands ready to grab. Ceun took a running start, then jumped.

His feet hit the stone and hands shot out of everywhere to grab him. He steadied and plopped down.

“That scared me good,” he said.

“Scared us too.”

He grinned.

“How is Quenji going to get across?” Aylin asked. “There’s no one on that side to pull him up if he falls.”

“He said to anchor the rope to the aqueduct and he’ll climb across,” said Ceun, already waving to Quenji.

We pulled one of the spikes out of the pack and hammered it into the brick. Quenji tossed us the end of the rope, and Danello tied it around the spike. Quenji checked the other end, still tied to the roof, and tightened it until the rope was taut. He dropped his weight on it, testing it. It drooped, but not too badly.

He slipped out onto the rope, hands and knees wrapped around, and inched his way over.

Snap!

The rope broke free of the boardinghouse roof.
Quenji grabbed tight, falling down and under the aqueduct. He swung, clinging to the rope.

A door slid open on the balcony and a man stepped out, silhouetted in the light coming from inside. He looked around, then peered over the railing.

“What’s going on down there?”

A pause, then the man turned and went inside. The door slid shut.

We tugged at the rope, bringing Quenji closer to us inches at a time. Finally, he reached the top and we dragged him onto the aqueduct. He lay there, gasping.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

He grinned. “What a story this will make. So what’s next, Shifter?”

“A long, scary walk.”

We followed the aqueduct, Danello in the lead, Quenji bringing up the rear. I think the pack wanted to move faster than the pace Danello set, but it was too dark and too breezy to risk hurrying. A good gust could blow us right off.

Clock tower bells rang when we were about halfway there, two deep, sorrowful tones that floated across the city. The occasional lamp bobbed below, most likely patrols making their rounds. The closer we got to the inner walls, the more lights we saw,
both moving and in straight lines along the street.

We crossed the inner wall. Danello stopped and crouched down. One by one, the rest of us did the same.

“There it is,” I said. The L-shaped foundry was below. It sat on a hill, and one taller brick section looked like it might be living quarters or offices. The foundries Papa had worked in had the smelting room at the top of the hill, the forge area at the bottom, and this foundry looked the same. Long and wide, with double doors at both ends to allow air flow, open now, even though it was late. Dark orange light lit the grass, and blue light flickered on the walls. Rhythmic clangs sounded unnaturally loud in the quiet night.

“They’re working at this hour?” Aylin said, crouched just behind me.

“I guess the Duke doesn’t want any delays in his weapons.”

“That’ll make it harder, won’t it?”

I nodded, my guts already churning. I’d assumed the enchanters would be gone at night, but if they were smelting the pynvium all the time, then who knew how many might be inside. It would be well-nigh impossible to get to the forges now. I adjusted my pack, and the boxes Ceun had found for me
clanked softly. They were heavy, would probably slow me down and make it harder to climb, but if I left them behind, we’d have no chance at all of destroying the pynvium forges.

“There’s the patrol,” Danello said. Two soldiers were walking the grounds. More soldiers had to be inside.

I had to risk it. Vyand wouldn’t have left unless she thought I was gone or leaving, so odds were the guards wouldn’t be expecting trouble.

Unless, of course, it was all part of the trap.

I hadn’t mentioned that to anyone, but it was a possibility. Vyand could have made a show of leaving just to see if she could lure me out, same as I was doing to her.

“Quenji,” I said, “you and Zee wait here.”

He nodded. “We’ll haul you up, don’t worry. Ceun is our best thief, so he’ll go with you.”

Ceun smiled. He had a lot of empty sacks looped in his belt.

“Let’s anchor the ropes.”

We picked a spot right above the big tree centered almost perfectly under the aqueduct. Unfortunately the open foundry doors looked right at it, so anyone coming outside might see us. We’d have to stay in the tree and not get too low. Danello pulled
out the iron spikes and Aylin had the hammer. She handed it to Danello.

“Time it with the hammer strikes,” I said. I’d been worried about the noise pounding the spikes in would make, but with the doors open, no one would hear us. The only good thing about them working late.

Clang!

Danello swung the hammer.

Clang!

He swung again. He kept it up, hard strikes in unison with the smiths, until both spikes were deep in the stone. Quenji and Aylin tied the ropes around them and gently lowered the ends into the tree below.

Awfully far below.

“Don’t look down,” Danello said, putting his hand over mine.

“Too late.”

“I’ll go first this time,” he said, looping the rope around his arm. We’d all put on heavy gloves for the climb. “I’ll tie the ends to the trunk so it’ll be easier to climb down. You should be able to hook your legs around like Quenji did before.”

“Be careful.”

He chuckled. “If I was doing that, I wouldn’t be here.”

I smiled back, but my heart was lodged in my throat, making it hard to speak. But I could pray.

Saint Saea, Sister of Compassion, hear my prayer. Let Danello reach the tree safely. Let us all find what we seek and make it out without dying.

He climbed, hand over hand, down the rope that looked so thin. I alternated between watching him and scanning the yard and windows, but no one walked outside or looked out. The clock tower chimed again, three bells.

Leaves swallowed him just before the darkness, then the rope went slack. I heard no crunch or thud or sounds of falling, so he must have made it to the tree. The rope wiggled, then grew taut. Seconds later the other rope started wiggling. Both stopped, looking solidly attached and at a faint angle to the aqueduct.

“I’ll take the left one,” I said, and Aylin went to the right.

Quenji and Zee helped us slide off the aqueduct and get a firm grip on the rope. My arms strained, but I held on, moving hand over hand same as Danello had, my legs and feet wrapped in the rope under me. Ten feet down and my arms burned, shaking with every inch. Judging by the grunts next to me, Aylin was having similar trouble.

“Ah!” she cried.

I couldn’t see her, but a ripping sound echoed up—the sound of someone sliding down a rope way too fast.