Alex raised her eyebrows, wondering how the old woman planned to get them down to the ground from the middle of the sky without a draekon’s assistance. Last Alex checked, she hadn’t sprouted wings, regardless of the ‘unexpected changes’ wrought by the vaeliana.
With little option but to follow Lady Mystique’s order and see what would come next, Alex turned to Xiraxus. “I guess I’ll, um, see you around?” She felt a stirring of sadness at the thought of being separated from him, since even though they’d really only just met, she was comforted by his strong presence.
Xiraxus lowered his face towards Alex, enough that she reached out a hand to touch his smooth black brow, stroking him like one would a horse.
“I’ll come visit you soon,” he promised, speaking her common tongue again. “And try not to worry, Alex. Everything will be okay—you’ll see.”
I sure hope you’re right, she whispered to him in her mind.
I’m always right, he responded confidently. You’ll learn that soon enough.
“Come, Alexandra,” Lady Mystique said, holding out her hand. “Time waits for no one.”
Alex had to purse her lips together when the old woman wheezed out a laugh at her own words, obviously entertained by the irony.
Grabbing hold of the weathered hand, Alex spared a glance around the amphitheatre once more, taking in Xiraxus, Zaronia and all the other striking draekons still in attendance, before her eyes travelled out over the view of the floating islands of Draekora. That was all she saw before Lady Mystique’s grip tightened almost painfully and the world around her flashed into a blinding light. Only when it faded did Alex come to see they were no longer in Draekora.
Instead, they were in the throne room of the Meyarin palace where, seated before her on a raised dais, were King Astophe and Queen Niida.
… With both Roka and Aven standing by their sides.
Thirteen
The Meyarin royal family was staring at Alex with unveiled surprise. But then, to her surprise, Astophe and Niida rose to their feet and bowed their heads in a clear sign of respect, with Roka and Aven mirroring the gesture.
Baffled, Alex wasn’t sure what to think, not until the king spoke.
“Great Aes Daega,” he said in his deep voice, speaking the Meyarin tongue. “You honour us with your presence.”
“High King of Meya,” Lady Mystique greeted, no longer speaking her foreign, lilting language, but instead using Meyarin words. “Thank you for your welcome. I shall not intrude upon you for long, I merely wish to return someone who I believe, for now, belongs with you.”
Lady Mystique nudged Alex forward and she stumbled up a step. Both Aven and Roka were studying her closely, their faces openly intrigued.
“This is Aeylia,” Lady Mystique said, concealing her real name. “She was abandoned in the forest as a babe and grew up amongst humans, only recently finding herself bonded to a draekon, as you can see.”
Alex ignored the woman’s false abandonment claims and just clenched her teeth at the reminder of her circus-freak skin.
“I believe she may have had a somewhat… traumatic episode which was witnessed by the young princes earlier today,” Lady Mystique continued, nodding towards Roka and Aven. “Please be assured that won’t happen again—she was merely overwhelmed by her unexpected surroundings after having been through a recent personal upheaval.”
Alex coughed lightly into her hand. It was either that or snort with incredulity at the overly simplified description of recent events.
“Due to her upbringing away from Meya and its denizens, Aeylia has had little experience with your kind,” Lady Mystique said. “I believe it is time to remedy that.”
King Astophe looked at Alex thoughtfully. “What would you have us do, Aes Daega? You need only ask and it shall be done.”
Alex was amazed by what she was hearing. Who, exactly, was Lady Mystique, and how did she command such respect from both Meyarins and Draekorans alike?
“She has no knowledge of what it means to be one of you,” Lady Mystique said, clueing Alex in to where she was going with all this. “She needs to be taught—your language, your history, your physical prowess. I wish to leave her in your hands so that you might teach her how to be who she is supposed to be. It is time for her to embrace the Meyarin blood in her veins.”
Goose bumps rose on Alex’s skin and she fought the urge to rub her arms.
“We will consider it a privilege to take the youngling in,” Queen Niida said, surprising Alex with the soft, compassionate look she offered her. With only that one glance, it was clear this queen was nothing like the cold, harsh Meyarin of Alex’s time. “My sons will see to her education personally, making sure she receives the best instruction available.”
Alex felt her blood freeze. Roka, she was okay with, but Aven? How could she possibly handle spending any length of time with the future murderer without giving away how much she detested him? As it was, she struggled just to look in his direction, let alone fathom the idea of learning from him.
“That is very kind of you, Queen Niida,” Lady Mystique said. “I’m certain Aeylia will be a quick study. As soon as she is competent, she will leave Meya and return to Draekora to be with the draekon she is bound to—the Heir of the Sky Kingdom.”
Alex had to admit, that was a pretty cool title for Xira’s position. It didn’t even matter that the old woman lied about Alex’s eventual return to Draekora. She of all people understood why Lady Mystique didn’t explain to the Meyarin royals where Alex would truly be returning to. Or rather, when.
“She’s bound to the Draekoran heir?” Aven asked, his tone full of wonder. Alex tensed automatically at the sound of his smooth voice, but she quickly forced her body to relax. “That’s a powerful claim. No wonder she shines as brightly as she does.”
“I’m sure our sons will be adept teachers,” King Astophe cut in, spearing his youngest son with a look Alex couldn’t interpret. “Across all areas of her training.”
“Of that I have no doubt,” Lady Mystique said with a wrinkled, knowing smile. “In fact, I can think of no one better to instruct her.”
Queen Niida clapped her hands together and beamed at Alex—actually beamed at her. “Then it’s settled. Aeylia shall stay with us while she learns how to be—well, one of us, I guess we can say.” She appeared flustered for a moment at her clumsy statement but then sat up straighter. “Roka? Aven? Will you kindly show Aeylia to her room? It’s nearly dinnertime and I’m sure she would like to freshen up before joining us.”
Alex’s stomach lurched at the idea of enduring another meal with the Meyarin monarchs—not to mention at the thought of being alone with Aven and Roka so soon. She sent a pleading glance to Lady Mystique, but the old woman only smiled at her in encouragement and, with a token farewell to the king and queen, the great Aes Daega disappeared in a blinding flash of light, leaving Alex on her own in what she truly believed to be a den of wolves—immortal, deadly wolves.
Despite her trepidation, Alex willed herself into a state of pseudo-calmness when Roka and Aven gestured for her to follow, silently trailing after them as they led the way from the throne room.
“Are you all right, Lasa Aeylia?” Roka asked as they walked up a Myrox and gold-lined spiral staircase.
Surprised by his unexpected use of the common tongue, Alex almost missed a step. His pronunciation wasn’t quite as eloquent as the Roka she knew of the future and he had a slightly lilting accent, but she appreciated his effort more than she could say.
“We were all concerned when you fell from the tower,” he continued, “even after you were rescued by your draekon.”
“I’m fine, Ro—uh, Your Highness,” she replied quietly, almost forgetting that she technically didn’t know him yet and should therefore remain formal. “Thank you for asking.”
He bowed his head slightly in acknowledgement of her gratitude.
“What did you ask her?” Aven asked in Meyarin. “And what did she say?”
/> “I enquired about her wellbeing,” Roka answered. “She claims she is fine.”
Aven let out a disbelieving huff of amusement. “She fell from the palace balcony at the sight of me; you saw it, don’t deny it. Even now, look at her—she seems terrified of me.”
Turning into a long, narrow hallway at the top of the staircase, Alex felt Roka’s eyes on her as if checking to see if Aven’s claim was true. She forced herself to appear as relaxed as possible, not wanting to fuel any further suspicions.
“I saw it, yes, but as Aes Daega explained, she’d just awoken to unfamiliar surroundings and was overwhelmed by whatever events had led her to us,” Roka said. “And wouldn’t you be nervous, too, brother, if you suddenly found yourself in the presence of two Meyarin princes after having been away from your people for your entire life? Let’s allow her to settle in and get used to us before we jump to conclusions about her being afraid on a personal level.”
“As always, Ro, you are the voice of reason,” Aven said.
Alex would have expected such a statement from Aven to be filled with scornful mocking, but there was none to be found. His words sounded shockingly sincere.
She knew then that it was going to be difficult to come to terms with the fact that this Aven truly wasn’t her Aven. He wasn’t evil—not yet.
“Why not call forth the Valispath?” Aven said to Roka. “Her room is quite a distance from here, and you know how Mother is if we’re late to dinner. Especially when the council is in attendance.”
“Until we teach her how to access the Eternal Path, she will need to know how to reach her room by foot. We don’t want her feeling trapped while she is our guest.”
Even the Roka of the past was thoughtful, Alex realised, feeling a surge of gratitude towards her future friend. At least some things hadn’t changed.
She made sure to pay attention to the corridors and staircases they passed through, since even in her time much of the Meyarin palace remained a mystery thanks to the Valispath. It really was the best method for moving around the palace, especially considering it was such a vertical building. The spiral towers went up and up and up—this she knew from the view on the outside, and of course from falling off the balcony—and her legs were beginning to cramp from all the stairs they ascended. She made certain not to give any indication that she was labouring like a mortal, though. Neither Roka nor Aven looked the least bit strained from the effort as they finally moved off the stairs and strode along a lush hallway that Alex recognised led to her allocated bedroom. She spared a thought to wonder about the chances of being given the same quarters both in the future and the past just as Roka opened the door and gestured for her to precede them both inside.
The room looked no different from earlier that day—and thousands of years in the future. There was even the colourful myraes flaming in the hearth, sending a wave of nostalgia over Alex. Before she could wonder who lit it, she turned her head to see Kyia sitting on her bed.
“Your mother told me you were on your way,” Kyia said to Aven and Roka in the Meyarin tongue. “She mentioned our flying acquaintance had returned to us.” She arched her golden eyebrows. “It’s weird, right? That she needs to be taught something that should be as natural as breathing?”
“She was raised by humans, Kyia,” Roka said, his curt tone surprising Alex. “It makes sense that she only knows how to live and act like them. And look at her—she can’t be much younger than we are.”
It was only with his words that Alex realised he was right about how similar they all now looked, at least age-wise. In all her shock of falling back through time, she hadn’t been able to look too closely at the young Meyarins. But the truth was, the three of them did look different, at least slightly. Instead of seeming in their late twenties as they were in her future, they now all looked to be around Alex’s age, perhaps a year or two older at most. The difference wasn’t obvious, but it was there, if only because there was a certain youthfulness about them. It was odd to think that in the next few thousand years they would only physically age about a decade.
“Yeah, I get it,” Kyia said. “But it’s still weird.”
“What I want to know,” Aven said, “is how are we supposed to teach her anything if she can’t understand us?”
“I can speak the common tongue well enough to hold a conversation,” Roka said. “I guess that means I’ll be in charge of her language lessons. But I’d like to point out that I’ve repeatedly told you both to consider studying with me, especially given our trade agreement with the humans.”
“It’s not as if Father is letting us take part in any of the trade negotiations,” Aven said, sounding disappointed. “If he has his way, we’re never going to meet any mortals, let alone have cause to speak with them.”
Alex felt her body turn to stone, understanding from Aven’s words that he hadn’t even met a human yet, nor had he witnessed the delegation of them that, according to D.C., led to him demanding the king end the Meyarin-Human alliance—the results of which then spiralled further downward into the mess of the future.
As utterly bizarre as it was for Alex to realise, none of that had actually happened. Not yet, at least.
“It matters not,” Roka said, waving a dismissive hand. “This is the perfect opportunity for you both to learn, so I suggest you take advantage of it. And besides, I can’t be around translating for you every minute of her training. It’s a simple language—it took me less than a week to learn enough to be proficient.”
“Why not just focus on teaching her our language—her language?” Aven asked. “Surely that makes more sense?”
“We’ll do that at the same time,” Roka said. “Regardless of whom she was raised amongst, she has Meyarin blood, so she will learn as fast as us. She’ll be conversing naturally in our tongue by this time next week.”
Alex had to force herself not to react outwardly to that, lest they realise that she could already understand them. She didn’t want to show all her cards just yet, not when she might be able to learn something without them realising. But it was hard for her to keep her face blank at the idea of becoming fluent in a foreign language in just a week. It had taken her at least a month just to get a handle on Pig Latin when she was twelve years old and staying at a dig site with other kids travelling with their working parents. All the same, she was fascinated by the idea of accelerated learning, if her blood truly was capable of affording such a feat.
“How about we discuss our teaching strategy further at a time when we’re not late for dinner?” Kyia put in. “That was the other reason your mother sent me here—she thought Aeylia might like some clean clothes. Perhaps something more appropriate to dine in.”
Alex almost wilted with relief at the idea of finally getting out of her wintry attire. She honestly had no idea how she hadn’t expired of heat exhaustion yet. But as strange as it was, even though the outfit had kept her warm in the snow and she wasn’t overly comfortable in the currently summer-like conditions, she also wasn’t terribly uncomfortable. It was almost like whatever insulation had helped her to remain alive on her icy varrungard experience was also keeping her internal temperature relatively stable despite the change in weather and seasons.
“Why don’t you introduce me to her officially and then we can all start getting ready,” Kyia suggested.
Both Roka and Aven’s expressions flashed with guilt as they realised they hadn’t even introduced themselves to her yet.
“I mean,” Kyia went on, not noticing the princes’ expressions, “I know she said all our names earlier today, so someone obviously must have told her who we are or what we look like or whatever, but I still feel like a proper introduction is important. Don’t you agree?”
Roka cleared his throat and turned to Alex with apologetic eyes. Switching to her language, he said, “I’m terribly sorry, Lasa Aeylia. We’ve been speaking amongst ourselves all this time without including you. Our behaviour has been deplorable and we would beg your forgiveness.”
“There’s nothing to forgive,” Alex reassured, marvelling at his rather poncy words. While Aven in the future still tended to be somewhat formal in his speech patterns, Roka had always seemed more casual. That said, given that he’d learned her language in a single week, he’d surely be able to relax into it with very little effort. Perhaps that was something she could help him with.
“I believe you already know who we are, but just to be sure, I am Prince Roka Dalmarta, firstborn son to King Astophe and Queen Niida, heir to the Meyarin throne.” He quirked his lips up in a smile and said, “But I insist you call me Roka. I’m not a fan of formalities.”
Alex bit her cheek to conceal her grin, since he’d said the exact same thing to her once before.
“This is my brother, Prince Aven Dalmarta.” Roka clapped a hand on Aven’s shoulder and then gestured towards Kyia to finish, “And our final companion is Lasa Kyia Tarennia. I speak for all of us when I say we are very much looking forward to getting to know you.”
“And I you, Roka,” Alex returned, sending him a small smile in return and doing her best to keep it on her face as she offered it to both Kyia… and Aven. “You’re very kind to take me in and teach me the ways of your—our—people.”
Alex winced internally at her near stuff up. She would have to be more careful.
“The pleasure is ours, let me assure you,” Roka said, still looking at her warmly. “My brother and I will now leave you in Kyia’s safe hands and she will walk you downstairs when you’re ready to join us.”
After Roka turned to his brother and Kyia to translate his words, Aven nodded and smiled at Alex before leaving the room with Roka.
“Sure, leave me alone with the draekon girl who can’t understand me,” Kyia muttered in Meyarin, apparently not having expected the princes to take off without her. She moved towards the large walk-in wardrobe at the side of the room and continued under her breath, “Because that makes loads of sense.”