Inkmistress (Of Fire and Stars 0.5)(51)

Nismae swept into the room with another person behind her. The figure wore an ivory robe that looked like a death shroud, the hood pulled up to obscure their face. Nismae called for silence in the room.

“Nightswifts, rise!” she commanded.

Everyone leaped to their feet.

“We have a new member. One who will make our betrayer bow before us. Meet my champion.” Nismae’s eyes glittered with pride.

The figure reached up to pull down the white hood of the robe, and the sleeves slid down to reveal slender wrists I would have recognized anywhere.

Ina.

I inhaled sharply, feeling as though the floor had dropped out from under me. It had been nearly a moon since I’d seen her at the top of the Tamers’ cliff. She pulled down the hood of her white robe, a slow smile blossoming on her face. But this time, it wasn’t the friendly smile that she’d favored me with in our past life together. This smile was small and dark and triumphant.

“This autumn, she will challenge the boar king for his crown. One day she will be your queen,” Nismae continued.

I waited for someone to question Nismae’s proclamations, but no one did. I could hardly breathe. How had this happened? Beneath Ina’s robe I could barely make out the gentle swell of her belly. In the time since I’d last seen her, her pregnancy had begun to show. The reminder of how she’d hurt me twisted like a knife already buried deep in my flesh. I hadn’t been ready to face her yet—not until I knew I could rewrite our past. Not until I’d found the Fatestone.

“Show them what you can do,” Nismae said, eagerness shining in her eyes.

Ina looked around the room, seeming to enjoy the way the audience hung on her next move. I shot a panicked look at Hal, hoping to silently communicate the magnitude of the situation. Then Ina opened her palms and sent columns of white-hot flame bursting up toward the ceiling.

This time, the Nightswifts reacted. They sank to their knees with wide eyes, Ina seeming to grow taller and more fierce as they bowed before her. She fed on their worship, letting the fire surround her until she blazed bright as the sun. When the last head had bowed, she drew the fire back into her palms. Twin black marks remained on the ceiling.

“Isn’t her gift extraordinary?” Nismae asked. “With a few moons of training and practice, she’ll be unstoppable.” Pride blazed in her eyes.

I felt faint. How had they met, and when had this training begun? Nismae’s knowledge honing Ina’s power would considerably even their odds against the king. I’d never given thought to what might happen if she actually won. She wasn’t bound to the gods. What would that mean for the battle and the aftermath? It couldn’t be good either way. I had to get the Fatestone and stop it—save Amalska, prevent any of this from coming to pass.

“I will be proud to serve as a champion for the people of Zumorda,” Ina said. “We deserve better than to have our villages destroyed by bandits, to be taxed into poverty, or to be turned away after years of loyal service to the king.”

The Nightswifts murmured their agreement.

“Leave us for now and return at sundown,” Nismae said. “I’ll have new assignments for you then.” She waved a hand to dismiss her people.

Squawks and screeches filled the room as the Nightswifts took their manifests and bolted for the windows, feathers flying. In mere seconds the room stood empty save for me, Ina, Nismae, and Hal, the last feathers still drifting to settle on the floor.

In the emptiness left by the Nightswifts’ departure, Ina faced me. If she was surprised to see me, it didn’t show. She pointed a graceful finger at me, then looked at Nismae. “That’s her. The one with the ability to change the future with her blood.”

“No,” I said, panic choking off any further words.

Nismae shot a look at Hal. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Hal looked at me in confusion. “I’ve never seen her do that. Asra . . . is it true?”

Nismae walked toward me slowly, like a puma stalking its prey. Her friendly demeanor was gone, replaced with calculating tranquility.

“Don’t touch me!” I leaped to my feet and backed up against the door that led back to the street-level exit, but it didn’t budge when I tugged on the handle behind me. If only I had wings like the others.

“Don’t bother trying to run,” Ina said. “Even if you refuse to write for us, we can still use your blood. Painted with it, I’ll have as much power as a god.” She still wore the same cruel smile.

“Please don’t do this,” I begged.

“I’m sorry, but there is no choice,” Nismae said. “From the moment Invasya told me about your gift, I knew your blood could be the final key to seal the king’s fate.”

Hal took a step forward. “Wait a minute, Nis. You can’t just hurt my friend. She doesn’t even know the full extent of her powers. She should be given a choice to join the Swifts if she wants—”

“I gave her that choice already,” Nismae said.

She reached for me and I screamed.

I scrambled away, but not fast enough. She slammed into me like a battering ram, sending me sprawling. My satchel fell open and vials scattered, clinking over the stone floor. My journal slipped out and fell open to a page written in Miriel’s angular script.

Ina folded her arms and watched with satisfaction.