Crowned (Beholder #4)(31)

I frowned. “Is there something wrong with the mud?”

Mrefu huffed in frustration. After that, he began picking up great handfuls of mud and slopping them onto the downward curl of his horns. At last, I made the connection.

“You’re talking about the Rushwa.”

Mrefu nodded. His voice deepened as he spoke in snarling tones. He then mimed biting at his arm. Now, I knew exactly what he was talking about.

“That’s right. The Rushwa attacked me. They tried to consume me alive, but I defeated them.”

Mrefu began gesturing to the forest. All of a sudden, the eyes didn’t seem so much to glare as to stare at me in appreciation.

“The Rushwa were your enemy too?”

Mrefu pounded his chest with his fist. The growling became plaintive. He turned his palm to face me. His furry palm glowed with purple brightness. The words of the Sire and Lady reverberated through me. “Hybrid magick always corrupts.”

I tilted my head, thinking. “You and your people wield hybrid magick.”

Mrefu nodded.

An image of the Rushwa appeared in my mind. Those creatures were tall and lanky, just like Mrefu. The Rushwa also had oversized heads, but that could easily be an illusion caused by the tar-like corruption covering their horns.

“I think I understand now,” I said. “You wield hybrid magick but some of you became corrupted. The Rushwa.”

Mrefu nodded again.

“So I did you a favor when I killed them. And now, will you do me a favor in return?”

Mrefu spoke once more. This time, his voice took on a happy and almost musical air. With a graceful motion, he crossed his arms over his chest and bowed his head.

I grinned. “I’m going to interpret that as a yes.”

Mrefu raised his head to meet my gaze. Determination shone in his eyes and he called out something in a loud voice.

In reply, a new voice echoed through the jungle. “Mrefu, don’t you dare!”

The hair on my neck stood on end. That voice sounded familiar.

Was it Nan?

“Draw your weapons. Now!”

Oh, that was Nan all right.

But how did she come to know Mrefu and his people? And why would she order them to threaten me?

In response Nan’s cry, things happened so quickly that I barely saw the blur of motion erupting around me. One moment, I was asking Mrefu to confirm his name. The next second, a dozen figures had stepped out from the jungle. All of them looked like Mrefu, only their gray fur had a purple sheen. Unlike Mrefu, each one carried a bow and arrow. Unfortunately, their weapons were drawn and pointed at a single target.

My throat.

Every muscle in my body tightened. This was not a good development. Sure, I knew a little fighting. Rowan’s brother Kade had taught me a nerve pinch that I could use on someone at close range. That said, I knew nothing about how to defeat so many without magick.

Jicho waved his arms. “Leave her alone! She’s my brother’s mate!”

I forced my manner into the perfect image of Necromancer serenity. “It’s fine, Jicho. I have it under control.”

In truth, I had no idea what would happen next. But my words seemed to calm Jicho, so there was that.

“Why don’t you check on things below ship?” I asked. With so many drawn arrows, I wanted Jicho out of harm’s way.

Jicho screwed his mouth up for a moment. “Oh, sure. Of course.” His face brightened with a huge smile. “I’ll stay below deck.” He shot me an exaggerated wink. “There’s plenty to do.” The boy spoke in rapid-fire style, which meant that he was hatching some kind of plan.

“Jicho, just stay hidden and don’t make anything—” Before I got the chance to say the word explode, Jicho had already disappeared below deck.

The moment Jicho was gone, Nan stepped out from behind the wall of green. She looked just as I remembered: a girl in her late teens with ebony dark skin and long braids. She wore a loose leather jerkin and cotton pants. I exhaled. My mind hadn’t been playing tricks on me, after all.

Nan was really here. Huzzah!

Surely, she had mistaken me for someone else before. Once Nan realized I was her Elea, things would move forward quickly. I could almost imagine myself grasping the Sword of Theodora…Healing the gateways with ease…And doing it all before the Martyr’s Comet disappeared from the sky.

As Nan stepped closer, Mrefu gave her an approving nod. My heart soared. The two of them were allies. That settled it. Nan would somehow intervene on my behalf. Although it wasn’t very Necromancer-like of me to show such emotion, I couldn’t help it. I grinned. “I can’t believe you’re alive!”

Nan merely stared at me, an unreadable look on her face. I decided to keep talking. Nan was a total chatterbox. If I spoke enough, she would definitely join in. For their part, the warriors kept their weapons aimed at my throat. I did my best to ignore them and press forward. It seemed that no one was giving them the order to shoot, which I took as a good sign.

“What happened to you?” I asked. “How did you come back from the dead?”

Even though I asked the question, I already knew one possible explanation. Recently, I’d raised thousands of Necromancers from the dead during a battle with Viktor. But all those mages had skull markings on their faces. I carefully inspected Nan’s skin. Perfect ebony. It was almost too ideal, actually.