The stars were still out, her only companions as she made her solitary way through the stronghold. She had several hours until she had to report at the Eyrie, and she sensed Xephyra sleeping comfortably through the bond. Her time was her own.
She started in the grassy field in front of the village, where the remnants of the previous day’s celebrations still remained. The obstacle course was gone, but after so many nights spent going through the exercise, Veronyka could still see it in her mind’s eye. This was where everything had changed for her, and it was where she felt most at home at the Eyrie.
Though the sky was growing paler to the east, Veronyka could pretend this was any other night, that Tristan was by her side, and everything was as it had been. But in that scenario, Xephyra was dead. So instead Veronyka imagined a new reality, one where she and Tristan did the obstacle course together, Rex and Xephyra by their sides.
Her heart lifted, and she let the vision dissipate.
Next Veronyka wended her way through the village. She spotted Old Ana hunched over her summer squash, tugging up weeds, and Lars, the metalsmith, waved as he started the fires for his day’s work.
The stables were dark and quiet, the calming rustle of sleeping animals the only sound to punctuate the silence. Veronyka soaked it in, running her hands along horse flanks and murmuring soothing words as she passed. She poked her head into the fenced area where the dogs slept and received several sleepy tail wags in response.
The dining hall was mostly empty, so Veronyka took her time over a warm meal of oats and honey. Morra was busy getting started on the baking for the day, though she paused long enough to give Veronyka a wink and to slip an apple into her hand as she passed.
Veronyka forced her muscles to smile and kept her mind guarded as tightly as she could as she said her silent goodbyes.
At first light Veronyka reported to the Eyrie for duty, just as the commander had instructed.
She was eager to see her bondmate. Maybe once she did, she’d have the strength to do what needed to be done.
The man who tended the female phoenixes was a local animage named Ersken. He and Beryk had grown up together in Petratec, and he was an expert at breeding hunting falcons, which was why the commander had enlisted him—with Beryk’s help.
It was clear, however, that Ersken was out of his league in trying to breed phoenixes. He was grave but honest, telling her that most of his chores involved feeding the birds and cleaning the enclosure. They also needed to be exercised daily, preferably when the other phoenixes were out flying. The so-called breeding happened only once a month, for a week, and with virtually no success—unless you counted the single egg that was probably fertilized outside the enclosure anyway.
Though the Eyrie was open to the clear blue sky several hundred feet above, the bottommost levels were shady and cool, untouched by the early morning sun.
Ersken led her around, pointing into workrooms and storage areas, but Veronyka was too distracted to pay much attention. All she cared about was seeing Xephyra.
At last they climbed down the stairs of the gallery, which ran the length of the circular space, and into the courtyard below.
The enclosure stood before them.
While the area was large and clean, it was still a cage, excavated directly from the stone of the mountain, with bars that enclosed it on both sides: where it opened into the Eyrie, and at the back, which gave a view of the gorge and steep mountain cliffs beyond. There appeared to be a matching enclosure next to the first one, but it was dark and unused—awaiting more females, Veronyka thought darkly. The pair of them reminded her of prison cells.
A rustling sound from the first enclosure drew her attention—phoenixes stirring in the shadows—then suddenly Xephyra lurched forward to greet her. The space inside was high enough that they could perch out of sight in cracks and crevices and wide enough that they could stretch their wings and fly from side to side. Ersken seemed surprised by Xephyra’s warm welcome of Veronyka and took the chance to fill the phoenixes’ water trough from a nearby barrel.
At the sound of the sloshing water, the two other females came forward, but with far more wariness than Xephyra. The nearer of the two was just a bit smaller than Veronyka’s bondmate, eyes bright with curiosity. The one behind was larger, her purple crest and tail almost black at the tips, and emanated nothing but cold, fierce hate. She puffed out her feathers, making herself look even bigger, and returned to the shadows of the enclosure after inspecting Veronyka with a detached stare. Veronyka had the sense that she was very old, though she couldn’t be certain—the phoenix’s mind was locked tight.
Xephyra’s beak pushed eagerly between the wide bars, and with a glance to make sure Ersken was occupied, Veronyka stroked it gently. Even after everything, Xephyra still wanted to be near her, still loved her. Veronyka tried to think of words, of apologies and reassurances and regrets, but she found that she didn’t need them. Xephyra knew. They were bonded, after all, and while they might need time to mend the strong bridge they’d once had between them, it was still there, and Xephyra knew her heart.
There were endless questions to ask as well—about where her bondmate had been and what had happened in their time apart—but Veronyka let them rest for now. They had forever to catch up.
The feathers along Xephyra’s neck were smooth and silky, and with a bit of searching, Veronyka located the barest hint of a scar in her shoulder joint, where the arrow had grazed her wing the previous night. Phoenixes healed quickly, and the wound had been superficial.
The relief Veronyka felt at being here with Xephyra, seeing her safe and unharmed, was powerful. She actually had to grip the bars for balance, pushing slow, steady breaths through her nostrils. It was okay. Xephyra was okay. She had known it, would have felt it through the bond if Xephyra had been harmed, but it still meant something to see it with her own eyes.
Suddenly everything else seemed more manageable. Veronyka and Xephyra were together again. Truly that was all that mattered.