The Deathsinger: Book 1

Ch. 23: Putting Aside Differences

The healer tended to Yoko quickly. She expressed admiration for my use of the butterfly bush tea and told us how lucky we were that Yoko had High Elf heritage. Without it, the internal wounds from the rock fall would have killed her immediately.

Afterwards, we rolled out the few surviving blankets by the fire and fell asleep beneath the stars, far too tired to put up tents even if we hadn't lost them in the quake. I was the last to drift off. Curled into the crook of Tievel's arm, I peered through blue smoke into the woods where the Banshee had emerged.

Holding up my hand, I called forth the winter magic and watched frost coat the pale skin, turning it blue and glittery. Alongside the thread of magic, there was something new, and when I prodded it, the ice melted and dripped down my arm. In the center of my palm, a faint orange glow pulsed to the same rhythm as my heart.

The Warden I killed during my capture had ice magic, but could he also have had fire magic? Nothing near as powerful as Tievel's, but an ember of magic could have existed in his blood. That was the most logical explanation. I'd taken it when I yanked his soul from his body with my Song. Just like a Banshee.

Knowing the truth was enough to make me feel ill, and I rolled to my side, facing away from Tievel and pushed my hands against my stomach to settle it.

'The more souls they consume, the more they look like Death.'

The Winter Woman in the palace had always terrified us. With her white hair and pale skin, she possessed an otherness that was unsettling, but it was nothing compared to the Banshee we encountered tonight. She must have devoured many souls to rot like that.

Tievel stirred. The arm beneath me straightened as he stretched it, then curled around my waist as he turned to his side. When I was settled in the arch of his body, he pressed a kiss against the top of my head.

"Sleep, love," he rasped, his strong fingers replacing mine against my abdomen. The gentle heat from his touch spread through my skin, into my stomach, and up to my heart, easing the panic holding my exhaustion at bay.

I closed my eyes and finally fell asleep.

***

Weary in our hearts and bodies, we traveled slowly the next day, rejoicing when we came across a small village willing to part with supplies. It helped that Tievel paid more for everything than they saw in a year. No cart but horses for each of us, as well as another tent, hardtack, hooks and lines for fishing, and a few snares we could set in the evening to catch food.

Back on the road, I shifted on my horse carefully and wondered if my feet might serve me better. I'd never had much need for horse riding, and from the way my gelding flicked his ears, he was aware of my inexperience.

He was certainly the most placid of the animals. Astreia rode a mare who nipped at anyone who came too close, and Tievel's stallion reared back, nearly dumping the prince into a ditch when an acorn fell in front of him.

"Lovely beasts, these," Yoko said, using her knees to keep her gelding from wandering into a clearing covered in lush grass and flowers. After days of blinding white on the mountain, the variety of colors around us was almost overwhelming.

"What would you have done?" Tievel snapped through gritted teeth as his horse kicked out with his back legs. "Take their best and leave them with these?"

"You paid for the best," she replied. "If you spend your money so freely, we won't have enough to pay for our passage across the Crystal Sea."

"I have plenty of money," Tievel replied, his hair darkening to maroon and his blue eyes flashing with ire. "That's not your concern."