The Dragons of Nova (Loom Saga #2)(108)

“You’re a dangerous woman, too. You seek out what you want, you pursue it with a reckless passion. You are relentless.” The Ryu took both glasses in her hands, inspecting them carefully. Petra never let them leave her sight. Coletta poured the wine from one glass into the other, filling it to the brim. She repeated this a few times, back and forth. Mixing them completely. “All of Nova knows you seek Yveun’s throne. Why haven’t you taken it yet?”

Coletta held out one glass. Petra regarded it hesitantly before accepting. But she did not drink. She would not drink before the Ryu did; she knew better.

“I am not in a position to.” It was the most honest thing Petra had said to a Rok in a long time.

“No, you’re not,” Coletta agreed. “At least not honorably, not by Dragon law.”

“And I would never be recognized as the Dono, if it was not done through Dragon law.” Petra followed Coletta over to the wide window that overlooked an expanse of foliage. It was the only visible window down into the garden.

Petra wondered if this was the place where the poison that killed her House had come from. None of the plants were familiar to her. She couldn’t even guess where half of them grew originally.

“I sat quietly, for many years, watching Yveun do as he would,” Coletta spoke to no one in particular. “But you changed things, Petra. And left me with no choice but to join the fray.”

Petra watched as the Ryu raised the glass to her lips and took a long drink. She waited several breaths, and nothing happened.

“I am beginning to believe that I have more reason to fear you than the Dono.”

“Then you are as smart as you seem.” Coletta turned to Petra. “I will give you one chance, Petra. Leave now, and remain the Xin’Oji. Give up on your dream to become the Dono, swear true fealty, and I will let House Xin remain as it has always been.”

The very notion was ridiculous, and Petra made sure Coletta was aware of the fact with her unrestrained laugher. “You cannot threaten me or my House, Coletta.”

The woman’s eye twitched at the lack of title.

“And I will never bargain with House Rok. Not when I hold the cards.”

Coletta huffed softly in amusement, raising her glass in the light of the orange sunset. “Then, to war.”

“To war.” Petra clinked her glass against Coletta’s, and finally drank alongside the Ryu.

A side door opened and Topann reappeared, Finnyr in tow. Petra snarled, setting down her glass heavily on the table the moment she saw her brother. “I declare now a duel, before the Rok’Ryu, for your life, Finnyr.”

“Under what claims?” Coletta asked, per the script.

“Actions against his House.” Killing Finnyr was going to be a fringe benefit of the night. Petra’s claws shot from her fingers.

“I approve this duel.”

Finnyr tried to make for the door the second the Ryu spoke the words. Topann closed and stood before it, preventing him from leaving.

“Y-you, the Dono still needs me,” Finnyr pleaded with Coletta. “You can’t let me die like this. He would not allow it!”

“Look at you, Finnyr, pleading to a Rok for your life.” Petra spat at his feet. “You pathetic little coward.”

Petra pulled back her hand. She was done dealing with her brother. She would go right for his heart and end it once and for all.

A chill swept through her, swift and sudden. It shot up her spine and into her stomach, pouring forward as blood from her mouth. Her knees knocked and her lungs burned.

Petra shuddered, and fell.

No. The word seared her mind. Coletta entered her blurring field of vision, looming over her like the Lord of Death himself.

“H-how?” Petra stuttered. Nothing made sense. “I-I am an Oji.”

“You think a title will protect you, Petra,” Coletta spoke down to her. “That has been your greatest flaw. You put so much stock into titles and rank that you forget what gives them power—fear.”

The woman squatted next to her, narrowly avoiding the blood Petra was spitting up as she gasped for air.

“You failed your House. You, who should believe in whatever means necessary to achieve your ends, never even thought that I would kill you here.”

“You drank from the same glass.” Petra tried to defend herself in what she knew were her final moments.

“And you know nothing of poison.” Coletta smiled, wide and open-mouthed. Her teeth were dull and small, eaten away beyond her young years. Her gums were worn and gray, curling and tired. Her breath smelled of death. “But I do. I know of poisons well. My body, too; it is strong with them, invulnerable to them. I also know that you do not have magic in your stomach.”

“F-F-Finnyr,” Petra growled up at her brother. She wished she had the strength to stand, just enough to kill him. If she was going to die, she would take one of them with her to the halls of Lord Xin.

But she didn’t have the strength.

Her body was in revolt. Her magic surged but couldn’t keep up with everything failing at once. If anything, the effort to heal resulted in her organs wearing out from magic depletion. She could feel herself turning septic, growing rotten with each passing moment.

“You should have taken my deal, Petra.” Coletta stroked her hair like a child. “It’s a shame to lose a woman on Nova as strong as you.” The Rok’Ryu stood with a sigh, as though the matter actually did cause her strife. “Finnyr.”