“Ridge?” Sardelle checked to make sure the communication crystal wasn’t transmitting, then laid a hand on his shoulder. “I know talk of magic makes you uneasy, but would you consider…” Hm, how to phrase this? He would understand the term telepathy, she was certain, but might object to it on principle. “You know how I talk to Jaxi? In my mind? Is that something you would be comfortable with? Or could become comfortable with? In situations such as this, it would be convenient. Also when we wish to converse with each other in private and there are other people around.” She bit her lip to keep from going on with her list of benefits.
He hadn’t looked back at her again, and there was nothing exciting ahead of the flier that would require his attention, so he was either thinking about it, searching for a way to reject it, or hadn’t heard her that clearly. No, he would have touched his ear if that had been the case. He must have gotten the gist.
“What would I have to do?” he finally asked over his shoulder.
“Nothing. Just… don’t get startled and let your flier drop out of the sky.”
He gave her a circle hand sign and said something that sounded like, “I don’t even do that when people are shooting at me.”
Sardelle waited a few seconds, letting him grow more accustomed to the idea, and left her hand on his shoulder. Thank you. It’s quieter in here.
Ridge glanced back, like he might be about to answer out loud, but he closed his mouth, giving her a thoughtful look instead. You haven’t been in here long, if you think that. He raised his eyebrows. Did you hear that?
She squeezed his shoulder. Yes.
Huh.
I’ll have to be monitoring you—know you want to speak—for me to ‘hear’ you, but all you have to do is think the words to respond to me. I know you’re not comfortable with magic or anything associated with sorcerers, so we can reserve this for emergencies, or flying, if you like.
It’s all right. Not exactly a ringing endorsement. But then he added, I want to be comfortable with you—what you can do. I just have to get used to things. Sometimes that takes a while. I’m not as young as I act, you know.
Perhaps not, but I’ve noticed your commanding officers are all the ones with the gray hair.
Someday, I’ll have to command someone as obnoxious as I am, and my hair will turn white overnight.
You’ll still be handsome.
Ugh, Jaxi thought. This is so cloyingly sweet, I may gag.
At first, Sardelle assumed the interjection was for her mind alone, but Ridge’s shoulders stiffened. Jaxi! She groaned.
What?
If you start talking to him about bonobos, I’m going to drop you into the ocean.
Highly doubtful.
That’s… the sword, right? You, ah, didn’t mention that it would be speaking to me too. Fortunately, Ridge only sounded mildly alarmed. Or maybe mildly affronted.
I didn’t invite her to do so, but she’s rude.
Jaxi made a rude noise in her mind. If you don’t correct him on calling me an it, I’m going to make bonobo noises in his mind all night long the next time you two are rutting.
Sardelle stared at the back of Ridge’s head, afraid Jaxi had shared that bit of disrespect with him as well, but he didn’t turn around and gape at her in disbelief.
I’m not that tactless. Not on first contact anyway. Although technically I spoke to him before, to warn him people were trying to blow you up.
For future reference, Ridge, Jaxi is a she, and has threatened to show you her truly tactless side if you call her an it. Also, I apologize for the interruption. I’m used to her waltzing about in my head, but I know it can be startling to others. You can compare notes with Tolemek if you wish.
A couple of moments passed without a response from Ridge. Sardelle flexed her fingers in her gloves, hoping this wasn’t too much for him. She would have preferred to wait to bring in Jaxi. Or perhaps never to have brought in Jaxi.
Oh, sure, keep him for yourself. Do you have any idea how few people I dare communicate with? It’s a lonely existence these days.
You can talk to some of our Cofah enemies when we arrive, ideally while they’re thinking about shooting at us.
I guess if Tolemek can handle a talking sword, I can too, Ridge thought. But it’s a little… daunting to realize she’s like a real person and that she knows what I’m thinking and saying to you when I’ve never really met her.
Thinking and saying? Tell him it doesn’t stop there. I even know about that thing he does with his tongue that you like.
Sardelle dropped her chin to her chest with a groan. To think, when she had been staying up all night with Ridge, then riding out on the horse, she had thought she could nap during this flight. I’m not telling him that, and you better not, either.
Fine. You can tell him that I appreciate him already elevating me to “like a real person.” That’s quick progress considering I was an “it” thirty seconds ago.
I’d actually like to finish this conversation with him in private, if you don’t mind. And not discuss you with him at this time. Someday, when you find your dragon lover, I’ll stay out of your relationship.
A hollow promise, given the odds of finding a dragon.
Well, maybe you’ll find another soulblade who adores your scintillating personality. There must be some of those still around. Sardelle had no idea how they might actually have a relationship that had anything to do with tongues, but with two powerful souls, who knew what was possible? Dragons had been known for shape-shifting, and she remembered a few legends about early soulblades having the power to do the same, though she had never seen that happen in her own lifetime. Maybe legend was all it was.
I’d have to do some research. It’s not anything I studied or read much about as a kid. Jaxi sounded vaguely intrigued.
Good, she had something to think about while Sardelle finished her original conversation.
Ridge looked over his shoulder. “Did you hear that last one?”
Yes, sorry, I was trying to arrange for a more private conversation for us. Sardelle groped for a politic way to say that Jaxi came with her and that was just how it was. But she hadn’t told him that up front, and it seemed unfair to foist it on him now. Besides, she didn’t want to risk it being too much for him to handle. With time, he ought to be able to get used to the idea, but maybe this had been a mistake. Maybe this would all be too weird for him.
You’re not giving him enough credit, Jaxi suggested.
I can understand your discomfort, Sardelle told Ridge. Even having known about soulblades for my whole life, it took me a long time to get used to having someone practically living in my head when Jaxi and I first bonded. She comments on everything from my sex life to my dietary choices to my latrine experiences.
Yeah? What’s she think of the tube?
Though she was truly worried about what Ridge would think of this new experience, she couldn’t help but laugh at his question. She hoped the appearance of his humor meant he wasn’t too disturbed by any of this. Oddly, she didn’t comment on that one. She’s probably holding back until I make a mess attempting to use it.
Yes, Jaxi thought.
Maybe the experience will inspire you to invent some more ancient archaeological devices for my squadron. Your people used to ride dragons in the old days, didn’t they? Maybe they had something more sophisticated than a tube.
I believe their flights were short. Sardelle lifted her hand from Ridge’s shoulder to a tentative touch of his cheek. She was wearing gloves, so it probably wasn’t that endearing of a gesture, but she wanted to let him know… she didn’t know what, really. That she cared. That she understood this was strange for him. Does this latrine banter mean you’ve gotten past the oddness of telepathy and sentient swords, or that you’re focusing on a lighter subject to avoid dealing with it?
He chewed on her question before answering it. Can it be some of both?
Yes.
He clasped her hand in his and held it for a
moment before letting go.
Sardelle leaned back in her seat. The reason I wanted to talk like this is I was wondering if you were planning to use me on your mission here.
He glanced back at her, and she sensed his confusion.
When you explain to those two captains what your people can do and ask them if they want to take any of us along with them on the infiltration, are you thinking they should know about me and what I can do?
No. Of course not. I’m not telling anyone your secrets, not when it could get you killed.
I thought you might have decided that since I’m being targeted already… the secret was already out.
If it is, it’s not widely out. But no, none of that. You wanted to fulfill your promise to Tolemek, right? Find his sister? That’s why I’m bringing you. And him too. Oh, sure, I’m hoping your memories and knowledge might be useful if our elite troops bring back something kooky and inexplicable—or something that would be too dangerous to fly home with—but as soon as we land, I was planning to send you two off to find that sanitarium. You should have time while Nowon and Kaika are infiltrating that lab.
Now it was Sardelle’s turn to take some time digesting his words. You mean you’re risking your career by dumping that colonel all so we can get Tolemek’s sister? She could have done that on her own without his sacrifice. Granted, she wouldn’t have an easy time navigating Cofahre alone, but she would never have asked him for this.
I’d be lying if I didn’t say I also had the thought that it’d be nice to have you—and your snarky glowing sword—there if a flock of birds flies into the propeller during this mission. I have a hunch this is going to be more challenging than the king or Nowon thinks, and I had a bad feeling about Therrik too. Not just because he was fantasizing about shoving my face into a meat grinder. Not only because of that, anyway. He seemed… I don’t know. It was strange that he showed up at Tolemek’s lab and started threatening him. It was strange, too, that he knew about you. We’re not in the same unit, and we’d never talked before meeting with the king. I’ll admit I’m well known in the military and in the capital, but I haven’t known you long enough for anyone except close friends and colleagues to associate you with me.
Should you have voiced those concerns to the king or your General Ort before taking the initiative of drugging the man and dumping him out of your flier?
Of course not. Didn’t Referatu children have the same rule as regular Iskandian children have?
Sardelle squinted at the back of his head. Which rule is that?
It’s easier to receive forgiveness later if you didn’t first ask for permission and get denied.
Ah. That sounds vaguely familiar. The logic of ten-year-olds.
And pilots. Now, sit back and enjoy the flight. If you want to sleep, I’ll let you know when we’re close to Cofahre.
She leaned her head against the back of the seat, resolving to follow his suggestion, though she found herself wondering if she might do more on the continent than help locate Tolemek’s sister. Maybe she could find a way to prove herself on this mission. She didn’t think she needed to prove herself to Ridge, but if the Iskandian king, who apparently already knew about her, found out she could be an asset… maybe she could, one action at a time, clear the image of the Referatu and cut a trail for any other gifted people in the country. It would be much easier to find and train new students if she and they didn’t have to spend their lives camouflaging their talents.
“One step at a time,” she whispered.
Chapter 6
Ridge yawned and wished he had some coffee. The sun had dipped below the horizon, and darkness was returning. The squadron had turned to the northwest, following the Cofahre shoreline at a distance, a long distance. They were up high, skimming through the clouds, and when land came into sight, it was a faint smudge on the horizon. The encroaching darkness would camouflage them as much as the clouds, but the last thing they wanted was for an overly assiduous lighthouse worker or a sailor in a crow’s nest to spot them.
He turned in his seat and called, “Sardelle?”
She had taken his advice and slept most of the morning, then read in the afternoon, and was dozing again now, the book she had borrowed from the library in her lap. She, at least, would be fresh when they arrived. He and his pilots would need to find a spot to rest after the early morning and the long flight. They had detoured twice to avoid freighters and pirate airships in the distance. He didn’t think they had been seen, but it had definitely kept them alert to their surroundings.
Ridge couldn’t reach farther than her knee without unbuckling his harness, but it was enough. Her blue eyes opened, focusing on him immediately.
“We’re almost there.” He wondered if she would respond in his mind. He hadn’t found their mental conversation as disturbing as he might have expected—probably because it was her and not some stranger—but having the sword pop into his thoughts… That had been bizarre. Even though Sardelle had alluded to having some kind of relationship with it, it had never occurred to him that it might be a she and have the personality, intelligence, and sarcasm of a human being.
Sardelle peered through the clouds to the west. We’re cutting inland over the Alteron Steppes?
For some reason, Ridge hadn’t expected her to be familiar with the area. He didn’t know why. She had probably been here when she had been working with the Iskandian army of old. Maybe because she talked so little of her old life that he didn’t know what to expect from her past.
“Yes, it’s—” He switched to thinking his words, figuring she might expect that now. It’s the logical place, since the mountains are to the north and the desert to the south. It’s not a populous area.
No, it never was. Horrible dust storms in addition to poor soil. And you can talk to me in whatever way is comfortable to you. She rubbed her face and wiped her mouth—afraid she had been drooling in her sleep? He hadn’t caught her at it yet, but even if she had been… it would be a mild offense compared to what Therrik had done in that seat.
Good. We’re going to cut for land soon. I wanted to warn you in case—
Sardelle jerked her hand up and frowned toward the shoreline. The clouds had thickened, so she wouldn’t be able to see anything. Not with her eyes anyway. He looked that way anyway. Clouds scudded across the horizon, and the first stars had come out above. He shivered through his jacket. Their route had taken them farther from the equator, and the air felt much cooler than it had off the Iskandian shore, reminding him of the mountaintop mine where he had met Sardelle.
There are eight airships waiting out there, over the coast. She met his eyes. They’re strung in a line, each just within sight of the next, so they can cover a lot of territory.
You’re sure?
Positive.
Ridge jabbed at the communication crystal. “Everyone awake? Good. Cover your power crystals and hide any hint of light in your cockpits. We’re getting close. We’re going to change our original route to avoid being predictable and to fly in over the mountains.”
“The very white mountains with the storm clouds over them, sir?” Duck asked.
“Yes.” Ridge wondered if Duck had better eyes than he did or if he had been paying more attention. “Stay close and fly safe.”
“Yes, sir.”
Apex and Ahn echoed the words. They both sounded as tired as he felt, and he was picking a tougher route, but if there were unfriendly eyes watching, it made sense to take a few risks to avoid detection. The question was how had those unfriendly eyes known Wolf Squadron was coming? An assumption based on the fact that some spies had escaped? Or had someone warned them that Ridge and his team were coming through tonight? He couldn’t imagine that the king had told many people about this mission, but that old castle doubtlessly had a lot of servants wandering about in it, not to mention old crevices and nooks that might support eavesdropping ears.
Ridge was tempted to fly closer to land, to make sure he turned west at the right moment
to take them into the shrouded mountains, but he didn’t want to be spotted—or heard—by an airship by veering inland too early, either. He couldn’t see much through the clouds.
A little farther. There’s one directly to our west, then one at the southern foothills of the mountains about four miles past it. That’s the last one.
Thank you. Ridge looked at the clock on the control panel, checked the air speed indicator on his wing, and used the time to count off the miles. He waited until the sixth mile, then dipped the flier’s nose and wiggled his tail to signal a turn. He could have used the communication crystal, but the old signals were ingrained in him.
You’re clear. The Cofah shouldn’t be able to see you.
He trusted Sardelle, but his shoulders were tense nonetheless as they flew west, the rough air within the clouds battering at his wings. He could correct the flier easily enough and hurried to do so. He still felt the need to impress Sardelle, and this was his milieu—and her first time in it. He wanted to give her as smooth a ride as possible.
The clouds parted for a moment, opening up the view to the south and west. Ridge spotted the steppes and the mountains looming ahead before the fliers were swallowed by the haze again. He thought he glimpsed that northernmost airship, too, but it had also cut out its lights, so he couldn’t be sure.
“That’s uncanny, sir,” Duck breathed. “How did you know?”
“Know what?” Apex asked.
“About the airship,” Ahn said.
Great, two out of three of his pilots had better eyes than he did. He was getting old.
“Just a hunch,” Ridge said. He hated to take credit for Sardelle’s clairvoyance, but he wasn’t going to announce her sorceress skills to his people in this manner, either. Or in any other manner. It wasn’t his secret to announce.
You can take credit. I don’t mind. I think it’s nice the way they look up to you. Obviously, you’ve achieved that without my help, but I’m happy to contribute to the extraordinariness of the legend.