Aldrik shifted, leaning over her. “What is it?”
“I think my brain is just-just returning slower from the distance.” She wasn’t sure if it made sense. There was a scratching noise, and she saw he was back to making notes. Vhalla struggled to sit.
“Lie down, Vhalla,” he scolded. She returned to her former position, his left hand ran over her hair gently. “You are amazing.” Aldrik’s voice was breathy and he focused on the papers instead of her. Vhalla stared up at him but he seemed to be talking more to himself. “Atop everything else, you will be the key to ending this war.”
“Do you think so?” Vhalla mumbled tiredly.
“I do.” There wasn’t a trace of doubt. “Now rest.”
Vhalla obliged and closed her eyes.
The weeks slipped by like the sand across the dunes. The desert was bleak and empty, but Vhalla’s days were full. Be it at her request or of his own accord, Aldrik recovered quickly from the shock of the effects of their Joining. Privately, he encouraged her to liberally rely on her link with him. He assured her that it did not affect him in any way.
Vhalla was cautious—at first. But the more she allowed that pulsing beat to take over her ears, the stronger and faster she became. It was as though her body was re-learning what it already knew, making every movement sharper and more precise.
Aldrik still rode with Elecia some days, and Vhalla up with the Golden Guard. Prince Baldair seemed pleased by her presence. The more time she spent with the younger prince, the more time she wanted with him in private. She had questions for his cryptic messages and sloppily veiled warnings. She wanted to ask him outright what he knew, what he meant. But their time together never extended beyond the march.
Vhalla’s evenings were spent sweating and pushing her body past its limits at the demands of the elder prince. Vhalla was thankful for the mix of gentle and forceful encouragement from Aldrik and her friends. Her body was beginning to fill out once more, muscle defining in places she had never known it could.
The atmosphere on the march began to shift as they neared the Crossroads. There was a palpable relief among the road-weary and sunburnt soldiers to be close to a resting point.
“How much longer do you think it will be?” Vhalla asked her companions.
“Perhaps a day, maybe two,” Aldrik answered. His attention on her was now a regular occurrence.
“A bed,” Fritz said wistfully.
“A bath,” Vhalla sighed happily at the thought. “There will be water at the Crossroads, right?” The host had been reduced to water rations from the wells that lined the Great Imperial Way in long intervals. None of them had washed for weeks, and Vhalla couldn’t imagine how badly they all smelled to someone who wasn’t accustomed to the stink.
“Of course there will be water,” Larel laughed. “The Crossroads is a magic place, Vhalla. It’s the middle of the world.”
“I can’t wait.” She was genuinely excited after being on the road for so long. “What will you all do first?”
“The first thing I am going to do is drink a Crimson Dragon,” Fritz proclaimed.
“You’re such a drunk,” Larel teased.
“A what?” Vhalla asked.
“A Crimson Dragon is a type of drink,” Aldrik answered from her left. “It is made with Western spiced alcohol, has a sharp taste, and is very strong.”
“I want to try one too, then.” She smiled back at Fritz and the messy-haired Southerner went off planning a grand adventure for the three of them to have. Larel tried to wrangle in his grandiose dreams and the two were bantering back and forth within minutes.
“Vhalla,” Aldrik said in a voice that was meant only for her. She swung her eyes up to him. “There’s something I want to tell you.”
“Yes?” His tone made her pulse race.
“At the Crossroads, I have some ... business I will attend to with Elecia.”
Vhalla was more worried at how delicate he was being with the subject than the words themselves. What had him looking so uncomfortable? “What is it?”
“You do not need to worry about it.” His eyes were guarded.
“Aldrik, you promised me—”
“Vhalla,” he hissed. She brought a hand to her mouth glancing around quickly to see if anyone noticed her slip in forgetting his title. “I will tell you, I promise. But only when the time is right.”
“When will the time be right?” she pressed.
“When it is over and sorted.” His tone told her she’d get no more information on the matter. Vhalla sighed softly. “It should only be two days, three at most. I will find you after and tell you everything.”
“All right.” Vhalla nodded and put on a brave face for the rest of the day. But his words rattled in her brain with every step, echoing into the night.