“Using our blood?” I asked. It wasn’t anything I didn’t already know.
“Trying to use it to give himself your powers. It’s all part of his plan. Get the Fatestone—live forever. Take on the powers of the demigods—become a god in his own right.”
“And you’re so much better,” I snapped. “You stole my blood and are using it for the exact same thing.”
“I believe in the greater good—it’s more powerful than any monarch, and more important than any one person. Our kingdom belongs to its people, not to a king who rules from a castle where he gets to feast every day while bandits destroy people’s homes or children starve in border cities. Perhaps Zumorda will be more peaceful without the gods. We all have some small magic—our manifests, the training that clerics receive. Those things don’t require divine blessing or intervention.”
“It won’t matter if there isn’t any magic left for anyone to draw on,” I said, my voice rising.
“We will not let what you’re talking about come to pass,” Nismae said. “If the gods leave, we will find another way to maintain our kingdom. Ina is the first nonmonarchal mortal to possess the gift of fire magic. She can see it and knows how to access it—she can teach others to do the same. You could become a teacher or a mentor, work to make sure that the magic of the kingdom remains stable. Collaborate with us to develop new ways for all people in the kingdom to contribute to the magic that links us all together.”
“If that is the plan, I want to hear it from Ina,” I said. “She’s the one who will be queen. She’s the one who will have the power, not you.” I had no intention of being swayed by their mad ideas, but I wanted to know if any of the Ina I knew still remained inside.
Nismae’s expression darkened. “The queen trusts me to serve as her voice.”
“Well, I don’t,” I said. Nothing she’d done had ever given me reason to trust her. At least I had once had trust with Ina, even if we’d both broken it repeatedly since then.
Ina hissed, sending a plume of smoke blossoming into the night air.
“She stays in this form now,” Nismae said, clearly growing frustrated. “People rally behind the dragon. She is the symbol of change and revolution and will soon be our queen.”
“I don’t care about your revolution, and if you want me to join it, you’ll let me speak to Ina. Alone,” I demanded.
“Just let her, Nis. We should talk, too,” Hal said.
Her facade cracked for only an instant, and then she was composed again. “You made your choice, and I will respect it.”
“If you respect it, then talk to me about it for a minute,” Hal said.
“Fine.” Nismae finally relented, though she didn’t look happy about it. “Talk to Invasya if she’ll agree to take human form. But keep in mind that if you make any move to hurt her, I will find a way to destroy you.”
Anger and resentment flared in my breast. “I’m not the same kind of monster you are,” I said. My gift was dark and dangerous, but I would never hurt Ina or anyone else on purpose.
“You know nothing about me,” Nismae said. She kissed the scar on the dragon’s cheek, and then she and Hal walked away.
“I won’t have a conversation with you like this,” I said to the dragon.
She hissed in reply. She was used to getting her way.
“I am not afraid of you,” I said. “If you want me to discuss joining your cause, you have to be in a form with which I’m not obligated to hold up both ends of the conversation.”
She snapped her tail in irritation.
I sat down and pulled up some long strands of grass to braid and waited for her to give in. Ina was not the patient sort. I could outlast her by days.
Finally, she shrank in on herself, more slowly than usual, until she stood over me. She still wore white as she had in Orzai, the luminous cloak a sharp contrast to my own mantle of shadows. Her white hooded robe hung from her shoulders, her white dress girded with silver rope beneath her breasts. Below that, her belly was large and round. Though I had expected it, the reminder was still a blow.
“What do you want to talk about? Nismae already told you everything.”
I stood up. “It looks like the baby will be coming any day.”
“One hopes. It’s much more comfortable to stay in dragon form right now.” She gestured at her belly with irritation.
“You won’t have that option when the time comes.” I said, wondering what they planned to do when she went into labor. I doubted many of the Nightswifts had given birth. It wouldn’t be convenient in their line of work.
“Don’t remind me.” She sighed. “Nismae is always by my side, but the Swifts’ most experienced medic is so timid.”
“You’re afraid,” I said. She was trying to be flippant, but I could see the truth in her eyes. Taking on the king didn’t frighten her, but giving birth did. She wanted someone with confidence and experience to be there when the time came—someone like me.
She didn’t respond to my statement. She’d never admit weakness.
“Tell me the point of defeating the king if there is no kingdom left to rule over?” I asked.
“We’ll save the kingdom from that fate. Nismae has studied magic for long enough that she’ll find a way. Right now we have to stay focused on our goal—it’s time for change,” she said. “Perhaps the gods will see what we’re trying to do for the kingdom. We want Zumorda to prosper, so our people don’t have to live in fear of bandits or excessive taxation. Surely the gods will see our side.”
“But you don’t have a plan. You don’t have a way! And in the meantime, the people will suffer. The demigods will suffer. The landscape of our kingdom will be changed forever.”
Ina scowled. “I thought you would see that our cause is better for the people.” She paused. “And I thought you cared about me.” She looked at me with an imploring expression I now recognized for what it was—manipulation.
“I didn’t just care about you. I loved you more than reason,” I said.
I’d loved her more than anything, even myself.
That had been my first mistake.
“Then come with me. Do what’s right.” Her voice had the same seductive lilt she’d used on me a thousand times before. But she wasn’t Hal—she didn’t have the power of compulsion. And now that I could see her clearly, I wasn’t going anywhere with her.
“I can’t put my faith in someone who betrayed me. This time, I choose reason. Not love.” I would never choose love again. I spared Hal a guilty glance, trying to tamp down the warm feeling that welled up when I looked at him.
“I still would have put my faith in you,” she said with a little half smile. “You would never hurt anyone on purpose, Asra, and that is both your strength and your weakness.”
Before I could answer, she changed form and launched herself into the sky. As the dragon passed over the trees, Nismae rose as an eagle to join her.
CHAPTER 29
IN THE DAYS AFTER I REFUSED INA AND NISMAE’S offer, my anxiety continued to grow. Now that I knew they were already in Corovja waiting for the right time to strike, it was that much more important to win over the king so he could ask the shadow god about Atheon. I had to find the Fatestone.