Realm Of Light Part 39

Fresh fear swept through her. It suddenly seemed to her that this ma.s.sive, silent force that had come from nowhere was in fact the army of Beloth, risen at last from the realm of shadow.

As she stared, their crimson uniforms changed to vestments of black. She stared down at the snorting, pawing horses and instead saw terrible steeds that snorted flame and reeked of destruction.

"It has come," she whispered, her voice raw with panic. "It has come at last!"

She pushed herself back from the balcony, her gaze still mesmerized by the vision. Her heart thundered inside her. She felt dizzy and cold as though she might faint.

"Elandra!" Caelan's hands gripped her shoulders from behind. Spinning her around to face him, he shook her until she regained her wits. Once again the soldiers looked like ordinary soldiers, mortal men in crimson and steel.

She shivered and pressed her face against Caelan's chest. For a moment he held her tight, murmuring rea.s.surance into her hair, and she could pretend that all would yet be well, that they still had a chance, that they could get away and find refuge elsewhere.

But her fantasies were in vain. If she ran away, she would not be able to live with herself. She would carry with her the guilt and shame of her own cowardice. There could be no refuge from that. If she ran away, the imperial army would label her father a traitor and tear his palace down. He would die in disgrace, stripped of everything because of her. Gialta itself would be plundered and burned, the peasants dragged away into slavery, the land impounded under imperial ownership.

How well she knew the imperial wrath.

"Pier must have known they were coming," she said hollowly, shivering. "While Father lay unconscious, Pier-"

"It doesn't matter now," Caelan said. "They are here."

"Is no one loyal any more?" she asked. "Has all honor and courage vanished from the world?"

"Men are afraid," Caelan said. "Their minds are twisted and rendered confused by things that should be simple and are not. The darkness comes. Look at the jungle, Elandra. Look at the river."

Only now did she look past the army to see birds streaming out of the trees in huge flocks as though driven. Monkeys on the move chattered, teeming in the trees. Animals, even the large predator cats, fled to the river, swimming across to bound out on the other side into the paddies and fields.

The jungle was one of the most savage places she knew. The predators were fearless. Every creature in it was a master of survival. But animals fled their natural habitat only in times of great disaster, such as fire or annihilation.

She looked again at the cloud, awed and afraid of the menace it represented. "Does it stretch all the way from Imperia?" she whispered.

"Yes." Caelan lifted his head high, his eyes studying the cloud. "I feel its power. I hear the whispers within it. The darkness comes, Elandra. It is engulfing the light and all that lives in it. We are running out of time."

She clutched at his surcoat. "What are we to do?"

"Meet our destiny," he replied in a grim voice.

"To Imperia, then?" she asked quietly.

He nodded. "It is the quickest way. All of this is centered there."

"I must be their prisoner, but you can evade the soldiers," she said. "You must stay free. Quick! Let me show you the hidden pa.s.sages-"

"No." Caelan gazed down at her. His eyes were gentle upon her, loving her, already telling her farewell.

She clutched him, wanting to cry out. "You must not argue. You are the hope of-"

"I am to be arrested," he said. "I lingered behind you long enough to overhear some of the terms. The Lord Commander is here on Tirhin's direct orders. You are to be escorted back to the capital in your full sovereignty, and I-"

"You're his scapegoat," she finished, hating Tirhin to the depths of her soul. "That pathetic coward!"

"He has outmaneuvered us."

"No!" she said fiercely. "I won't submit to him. I won't! I don't care what the Lord Commander's orders are, you will not go back to Imperia in chains. You must escape."

"I will not run away."

"Then fight-"

Caelan touched her hair, stroking it. Resignation lay in his face. "And give them an excuse to destroy your father? Why should I sacrifice a piece of myself to heal him, only to bring about his execution now?"

She let out a sigh then, struggling not to cry. "I'm sorry," she said. "I keep saying the wrong things. I haven't even thanked you properly for what you did before-"

"Hush," he said softly into her hair, resting his chin on top of her head.

She slapped tears from her eyes, angry at herself for being so emotional. "I never used to cry like this. I used to have control."

"If you had no fears now, I would not trust you," he replied, kissing her forehead. "Do you still hate me?"

She shook her head and hugged him tightly, trying to become part of him, unwilling to let him go.

Finally he pulled away, loosening her fingers when she held onto him. "We must face this," he said. "We must be brave for the others' sake."

"I don't want to be brave!" she cried. "I don't want to lose you!"

Voices carried through the palace. Hearing them, she stiffened and tightened her grip on Caelan. Everything was ending. She could not bear this.

"Oh, my love," she whispered brokenly, sobbing freely now. "I cannot give you up. I love you so much-"

He kissed her, deeply, possessively, until her thoughts were spinning and she was drowning in the emotions he wrought in her.

"We are one," he said, cupping her chin between his hands. His eyes held hers, although her tears caused her view of his face to blur. "We shall always be one. Believe that, my dearest, no matter what befalls us."

"Empress!" called a voice from the room within.

Elandra turned that way, then glanced over the railing of the balcony. They were trapped. She still could not accept this defeat. Her heart raged at the injustice of it. She did not know how Caelan could be so calm.

"Compose yourself," Caelan urged her softly. "Let them see an empress."

"I am a woman," she protested, sniffing and trying to dry her eyes, "and I am losing all I hold dear."

"We are not defeated yet," Caelan said.

"And when I am married at spear point to that traitor?" she retorted in fresh fury. "When I am forced to his bed? Will you be so calm and able to speak of strategy and-"

"Majesty." A soldier appeared, one of her father's men. "Compliments of Lord Albain, and will you please go to your apartments? I am to escort you there personally."

Elandra opened her mouth, but Caelan took her hand.

"Come," he said. "I will walk with you there. Your father wants you to wait for them with dignity."

His voice and gaze were filled with warning. Elandra did not want to go, but he was right. All that she had left now was her pride, and if even it was failing her, then she must pretend to have it.

Alti and Sumal were waiting for her at her apartments, looking big-eyed and worried. Caelan opened the door for her and led her inside.

"Make your preparations," he said. "Be ready for whatever comes."

She felt her lips tremble anew. "Can't we-"

"Remember that I love you. As long as the G.o.ds give me breath and the strength of my arm, I swear I will not fail you."

He kissed her, grave and unhappy, and went out.

As the door shut behind him, she buried her face in her hands. She wept long and bitterly, feeling the sourness of defeat. Everything she had hoped for, everything she had planned for, was ending. She could feel the hand of Fate on her, and she hated it. What was the good of wearing a crown and having people call you Majesty, if in the end you were only a p.a.w.n in a larger political game, to be pushed here and pushed there? She would have been better off to have spent her days still doing the mending and scrubbing floors.

A faint noise brought her out of her misery. She looked up, frowning, and turned around.

She saw a large sack of coa.r.s.e homespun lying on the floor. Its bulging contents shifted and moved. Another faint noise, almost like a whimper, came from within.

Elandra held her breath a moment, then approached it cautiously. Drawing her knife, she wondered if it was a trap placed here by her enemies. There had been attempts made on her life before. This sack could hold anything from a bundle of cobras to a demon.

But she thought-she hoped-it held something else. She decided to take the chance.

With her knife, she slashed across the sack, slitting the cloth, then jumped back.

Nothing happened at first; then an eye peered cautiously out. She caught a glimpse of golden skin and knew swift disappointment.

It wasn't the jinja jinja she'd hoped for. she'd hoped for.

She stepped back and put away her knife, intending to call Alti to take it away.

But a small hand reached through the slit and ripped it wider. A head emerged, swiveling around to reveal a triangular face, dainty pointed teeth, large defiant eyes, and pointed ears.

It was a jinja, jinja, after all, but she had never seen one that wasn't green. This one climbed out of the sack and crouched there, clearly wild and terrified. Its gaze darted in all directions, and nothing rea.s.sured it. after all, but she had never seen one that wasn't green. This one climbed out of the sack and crouched there, clearly wild and terrified. Its gaze darted in all directions, and nothing rea.s.sured it.

There should have been handlers. There should have been some preparations, a bit of initial training to the creature to gentle it prior to the bonding. She did not know where or how Alti had managed to get one captured from the wild on such short notice, but he had.

Now that it was out in the sunlight that streamed in through her windows, she could see that its golden skin had a greenish undertone. It was much smaller than the usual jinja, jinja, not even reaching to her waist. She wondered if it was fully grown. not even reaching to her waist. She wondered if it was fully grown.

"Little one," she said softly, reaching out her hand.

The jinja jinja panicked. Screaming, it zigzagged about the room, darting madly, knocking over furniture and objects, leaping at the windows like something crazed, only to fall back into the room as the screens held. panicked. Screaming, it zigzagged about the room, darting madly, knocking over furniture and objects, leaping at the windows like something crazed, only to fall back into the room as the screens held.

Panting, it lay on the floor and moaned to itself.

Elandra dared not approach it, fearing it would go into another frenzy and do itself serious harm. Not knowing what else to do, she drew out her topaz and held it up so that the light could shine on it.

"Jinja," she said softly, crooning to it, "golden like this jewel, golden in my chosen colors. Good she said softly, crooning to it, "golden like this jewel, golden in my chosen colors. Good jinja, jinja, rare and valued rare and valued jinja, jinja, brought to me as an omen in this day of trial and sore need." brought to me as an omen in this day of trial and sore need."

The creature rose up on its haunches, its gaze fastened on the jewel, which had begun to shine. The topaz seemed to gentle it, mesmerize it, exactly as it had done to the dragon.

"I will not hurt you," Elandra said to the creature. "I will keep you fed. I will give you pretty things. You will sense the magic for me. You will keep it from doing me harm."

The jinja jinja swayed, its large eyes glowing. It reached out one hand. "Give rock." swayed, its large eyes glowing. It reached out one hand. "Give rock."

"The topaz is mine," Elandra said with gentle firmness. "And you will be mine. My possessions are together, close, but I am mistress of them. Come and bond with me, pretty jinja." jinja."

She put away the topaz, and the jinja jinja hissed in disappointment. Angrily it bounded away. Elandra sighed and settled herself in a chair, forcing herself to pretend patience she did not feel. hissed in disappointment. Angrily it bounded away. Elandra sighed and settled herself in a chair, forcing herself to pretend patience she did not feel.

Finally, after tearing apart a pillow and scattering the stuffing everywhere, it came back to her and crouched just out of reach.

It stared at her long and hard. She stared back. She could feel magic crawling about the room, but whether it came from the jinja jinja or from another source she did not know. or from another source she did not know.

"Hurt me," the jinja jinja said, eyes flashing. said, eyes flashing.

"The trapper? I am sorry. You have been frightened too. You are far from your jungle temple and the caves which should have kept you safe."

The jinja jinja drew back and rocked itself, looking awed. drew back and rocked itself, looking awed.

"Yes, I know of your home," Elandra said. "I am very great among the humans. I have much consequence. You will have consequence too. Everyone will see how pretty you are, because you are mine. Will you bond with me?"

"Bonding mean serve."

"Yes."

"Trapper make do. Trapper hurt."

"If you will not bond, I will not force you," Elandra promised. "If you will riot bond, I will have you released back into the jungle."

"No!" the jinja jinja said in alarm. "Not safe. Danger!" said in alarm. "Not safe. Danger!"

Elandra thought of the fleeing animals and birds. "Are you safer with me?" she asked, and again held out her hand.

The jinja jinja tilted its head to one side and studied her a long time. Then it glided closer, its tiny feet not even touching the ground. tilted its head to one side and studied her a long time. Then it glided closer, its tiny feet not even touching the ground.

"You bond with wild jinja jinja? No tame. No sorcerer touch."

"I need help," Elandra said. "I need a good jinja jinja to serve me and protect me." to serve me and protect me."

The creature bared its pointed teeth conceitedly. "I best jinja. jinja. Best!" Best!"

"Then we are together?" Elandra asked it.

The creature took her hand and lifted her fingers to its face. It began to hum, a sweet eerie sound that vibrated through Elandra's bones. She shut her eyes, trying not to fear the sound. A peculiar feeling washed in and out of her, and the humming stopped.

She opened her eyes and found the jinja jinja crouched at her feet, its face against the floor. It was trembling. Concerned, Elandra bent over and stroked its bare back gently. crouched at her feet, its face against the floor. It was trembling. Concerned, Elandra bent over and stroked its bare back gently.

"Are you still afraid?" she asked it. "I'm sorry." This wasn't going to work. The creature would have to be set free, discreetly so no one else would catch it. "I'll tell Alti to let you go."

The jinja jinja jumped up fiercely, eyes flashing. "No go! No go! You promise good eats, pretty eats! You promise." jumped up fiercely, eyes flashing. "No go! No go! You promise good eats, pretty eats! You promise."