Land of Strength and Sorrow

  Jovi’s spine straightened, and the hair on the back of her neck stood up. Could it be? She didn’t want to admit it, but the description of the woman sounded an awful lot like Belisandre.

  She rushed from the room straight across the hall into the next room and didn’t stop until she reached the window where she knew the front gate would be visible.

  She gasped, “It’s her!”

  “Who, my Queen?” Malador asked, his chest pressing against her back as he peered over her.

  “Belisandre, the sorceress who gave me the recipe for the cure I gave you.”

  Silence stretched around them as Jovi stared at the Fire Mages throwing fireballs at the gates. Some even had staffs, and as they slammed them into the ground, a wave of fire shot out, attacking the entrance.

  Malador placed a gentle hand on the small of her back. “If she gave you the cure, then she must have had her own agenda the whole time. She’s brought our enemies here to fight. If they want a fight, we will give them one.”

  The Frost Mages in the hall cheered, but Jovi didn’t. Another battle, another fight. She didn’t have the energy.

  Somehow, she had to though.

  “Then, let’s give them one,” she said and mustered as much strength as she could.

  More cheers rang out as Jovi followed Malador from the room and down the stairs. They needed some defenses if they were to stop the fire from burning right through the wooden doors.

  Good thing Frost Mages wielded ice.

  Downstairs, Jovi went straight to the front gates. The wood had turned black in places and was thinned in others. It wouldn’t be long. The Fire Mages would break through any minute. They didn’t even need a battering ram to do it, not with their fire.

  Her heart dropped. There would be no way to get out of the castle now. No easy escape through the tunnels. They would fight here and die here, and that would be the end of it.

  Malador touched the door. “Mages. Here.”

  Jovi couldn’t peel her eyes away as she watched a coat of ice cover the door. With each new hand that joined the mix, the layer grew thicker and thicker until it reinforced the wood with a second barrier all made of ice.

  Fire would surely melt it, but as abundant as it was, it might take a while. At least it would buy them some time.

  To do what, though? With nowhere to run and nowhere to hide, what did they need time for? Wouldn’t it be better to face the inevitable sooner, rather than later?

  Malador reached out and nudged the small of her back, leading her down the hallway, toward the throne room. But, every so often his team of Mages, along with himself, would stop to rub the walls, tracing their fingers to form a barrier with their ice magic. More walls the Fire Mages would have to melt through to get to them.

  More time bought.

  Once Jovi made it to the throne room, she realized everyone had gathered within again. Almost as if no time had passed since her marriage. Perhaps nobody had left the room to begin with and instead stayed behind to celebrate the match.

  She doubted that, though. Highly.

  King Ryan no longer sat on his throne, instead stood in the middle of the room with Queen Rovia while he stared at his brother, who stood at the opposite wall.

  Jovi went to her father and embraced him. “Father.” She exhaled.

  King Ryan held her away from him, his eyes searching. “Did the bastard hurt you?”

  “Father!” She’d never heard him swear like that before. “No, he hasn’t hurt me. In fact, he’s treated me only with kindness.”

  “Good, dear.” Queen Rovia rubbed her shoulder. “That is very good.”

  Jovi could slice the tension like a piece of cake right now. Everyone listened as the sounds of war closed in around them. The smell of burnt wood lingered in the air.

  Jovi bit the inside of her jaw and faced her husband, who’d been standing behind her the whole time, a fact she hadn’t even realized. Her cheeks heated, hoping he hadn’t heard what her father had asked. “Malador, is there any way we can win this battle?”

  Malador looked at the ceiling, his eyes showing his thoughts as they worked in overdrive. When he dropped his chin down, he bit his pale-pink lip, which drew Jovi’s attention to them, making her remember how they felt against her cheek and how much she hadn’t hated the feeling. With a shrug, he looked past her toward King Ryan. “Can your warriors battle?”

  “Not against magic,” King Ryan stated. “Magic is our weakness.”

  Malador nodded, tapping a finger against his cheek. “Hmm. Well, our frost is defensive. We can hold them off indefinitely if we must, but we cannot hurt them without being close. If we get close, we risk their fire, but if we could somehow touch their chests, we could freeze their hearts and kill them.”

  There were a lot of “ifs” in the sentences he spoke. Nothing could be certain right now. Not in the midst of a fight.

  Plus, the Fire Mages had a wild card, the sorceress Belisandre. Her magic appeared even more powerful than the Mages’. But Jovi didn’t know much about her…although she knew someone who did.

  Jovi touched her father’s hand. “Father, Belisandre is with these Fire Mages. She leads them. What do you know of this?”

  King Ryan stroked his chin. “Well, I—uh, nothing. I know nothing about her joining with the Fire Mages. It was never supposed to happen this way.”

  Jovi scrunched her forehead. “What do you mean? What do you know?”

  “Yes, please tell my wife what you are hiding.” Malador stepped forward, his eyes narrowed. “Before it’s too late for any of us.”

  The King, in an act Jovi had never seen before, looked at his feet. “Well, the—uh—sorceress came to me while you had me chained up. She said she’d help Jovi out there; her magic could reach her somehow. I don’t know the specifics, only that she was to give you a recipe for a cure that wouldn’t cure a thing.” When he met Jovi’s eyes, the corners of his mouth sunk toward the floor.

  “Father, how could you do this? Your hatred, your anger, they ruled you when your kindness and compassion, your knowledge of your land should have lead you. Because of that anger, you’ve doomed us all. You could have killed us all with your fake cure, and why? Because you couldn’t see past something that happened twenty years ago. You couldn’t see the future.”

  He couldn’t see me, only his long-deceased son. Will I ever be important to him? she wondered.

  King Ryan rubbed his chin. “You’re right. I should never have taken it this far.”

  Malador stepped in front of Jovi, his anger made apparent when his shoulders quivered. “No, you shouldn’t have. Not only did your hatred of my people make it so we could have died out, never to be seen again, but now it has made your daughter marry a man she’d rather not have. She did as she had to, though, to keep you alive and for the good of her land. You could learn a thing or two from her.”

  Jovi swelled with pride. Nobody had ever spoken up for her like that, not to her father. Nobody had ever stood up for her. She risked a glance to the back wall where Cappa hid in the shadows, knowing he would have. But, she had to stop having those kinds of thoughts. She had to let him go, let him live his own life while she got used to her own. So, she focused on her new husband, and getting out of this battle in one piece.

  Jovi’s shaky fingers stretched out, and she placed her hand on Malador’s arm. “Thank you, husband, for your honorable defense of me. It means a lot. My father surely has learned a great lesson today.” She paused and turned to her people, all of them, Mages and humans, magic and none, she faced them all head-on. “Good people. Today, we must band together as one. We must fight. The Fire Mages will never leave us alone unless we defeat them. So, defeat them we must. Who’s with me?”

  Battle cries and shouts of agreement hit her ears, and she couldn’t help the smile that painted itself across her face. Maybe I won’t be so bad at this whole ruling thing, she thought.

  Malador grinned at her. “You’ve heard your Queen. Now, prepa
re for battle. Dress in any armor you can find. Grab any weapon you see. Tonight, we stand. Tonight, we fight. Tonight, we may die, but we do it together.”

  More cries wrapped around them and Jovi’s chest expanded with warmth. The castle came alive with movement. King Ryan led warriors to the armory and brought them back dressed head to toe in chainmail. Jovi didn’t understand how armor would stop magic, but, she knew nothing about fighting, so perhaps it would do the trick.

  Cappa came to her, his presence suffocating her as he stood close. Too close. “I’m here, Princess. Or should I say, Queen?”

  She rubbed the back of her neck. “Cap, you don’t have to—”

  He held his hand up. “I am your guard. Have been from the start. If you think just because you are now married I won’t protect you, you’re about to learn something new.”

  Jovi’s jaw fell open. How could he be okay standing so close to her? She wasn’t. In fact, she felt like she couldn’t breathe again, and it had nothing to do with a full throne room. It had everything to do with the man in front of her. The man she loved more than anything, standing in front of her, honoring his agreement to protect her, making her heart thump like a drumbeat.

  Malador wrapped an arm around her waist. “You should dress yourself in armor, as well, my wife. It might not stop the fire, but it will help protect you. At least some.”

  Cappa waved her forward. “Come. I know there is something that will fit you.”

  She followed and kept her lips pressed together, her eyes on her feet. It hurt her chest to look at him. Her feelings hadn’t changed. She still wanted him, not the Mage King. She would always belong with Cappa, no one else.

  When they reached the armory, it was empty. Cappa shut the door and pushed her into the corner of the room, his face inches from hers. “Run away with me.”

  Jovi angled her head. “What?”

  “I mean it. Come with me. We’ll disappear, right now, through the tunnels and leave the Frost Mages to their own fate.” His breath tickled her cheek.

  Part of her wanted to scream yes. She would go. Gladly. But another part, the more stable part, knew that if she left now, it wouldn’t just hurt the Frost Mages, it would also hurt her people. Her parents. Her whole kingdom.

  She couldn’t do that.

  Jovi stared into his eyes. “Cap, I can’t do that. I can’t leave my people to burn. I won’t. Not for love, not for anything.”

  He fell against her, his nose digging into her neck as he wrapped his arms around her, rubbing up and down her back. She couldn’t stop the hand that snaked around him, or the other one for that matter. She placed gentle caresses down his back and over the bare skin on his neck.

  He didn’t pull away as he said, “I can’t watch you with him. I can’t stand it.”

  “I know.” A lump covered the back of her throat. “I can’t imagine how hard it must be. I’m sorry. I never asked for any of this, but regardless, it is my duty. You no longer need to be my guard, Cappa. I release you from your responsibility. If you want to go and hide, to run back to Lyenhaus and be with your father, then go. I won’t stop you.”

  Cappa raised his head, his eyes wet with unshed tears. “I won’t leave you. Not yet. Not when you still need me.”

  “It’s torture! I won’t have you stay here, beside me, tempting me. I couldn’t stand it.”

  “It’s too late. It’s already been decided.” With a move so quick she didn’t see it coming, he placed a lingering kiss on her cheek. She winced as if she’d just been stabbed. “Now, get some armor on.”

  With that, he left her to change. She removed the white gown, donned some old, thin pants and a discolored white shirt. The armor went over it, and she grabbed a short sword, just in case. She didn’t have a clue how to even swing it, but she’d figure it out. She hoped.

  After, she marched back to the throne room. Meical had inched closer to King Ryan. It was time Jovi put an end to this.

  She grabbed Meical and tugged him along with her as she moved in front of her father. “Your brother helped me when almost no one else could. He’s the reason I’m alive. He’s here today because he wants to see you. He misses his family more than he’ll ever admit. It’s time the past was put behind both of you. The future is before us, a new one, filled with family. That should start today.”

  She walked away and joined Malador, but after a few minutes she looked back to see her uncle and father finally speaking.

  Tapping Malador on the shoulder, she licked her lips. “There is something I must ask you before I forget. I know it isn’t the right time, but I might never get another chance.”

  “I’m listening.”

  “Bertson, the stone Giant. You played a part in turning him to stone, didn’t you?”

  Malador nodded. “I did. All of us did. It is more of an ice sculpture, but we couldn’t freeze his eyes.”

  Jovi shrugged. “Well, I would like him unfrozen. He has three children. On my journey, I found them hiding and waiting for their father. They need him.”

  Malador flicked his head toward the ceiling. “Done. I will be happy to release him.”

  Jovi grinned. Had it really been that easy? She was beginning to see that Malador was nothing like what she had first thought.

  I think he’s already proven that much, she told herself.

  Zander rushed through the room. “They are at the last barrier.”

  Malador raised his arm. “Frost Mages, to the front. No matter what, do not break formation. Hold the line with a wall of ice. If we can fight them off long enough, they will grow tired. Their magic weakens them at a much faster pace, as we’ve seen many times before.” Nods filtered through the room as Malador leaned close to her. “You stay toward the back, out of harm’s way. I would like to know you are safe as long as I’m alive at the front.” He pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose.

  Jovi blushed when she noticed Cappa watching them.

  She gave her husband a nod, fled to the back of the room, and sat once again in her small chair. Why did she have to have armor and a weapon if she wouldn’t be able to use it?

  Silence filled the room after that as everyone waited for the Mages to burst through the doors. They didn’t have to wait long.

  Before Jovi knew it, a wall of ice shot up all the way to the ceiling. It looked impenetrable, but she knew ice melted, especially when fire was involved. Red and orange balls blasted into the wall, one after another, and water slid down like rain onto the floor, sloshing against the tiles.

  Jovi’s ears pounded, and her heart raced. Secretly, she was glad Malador had sent her to the back. She would have been frozen—with her feet glued to the ground—if she’d stayed in the front, unable to do anything but die. Even from the back of the room, when she leaned forward in the chair to get a better look, she gripped the arms so hard her fingertips turned white. Frozen in place, not sure she could move even if prompted.

  Maroon robes faced off against blue ones, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw something else. Someone in a torn purple gown sliding right past the Fire Mages toward the wall.

  Just like that, Jovi’s legs gained strength and her mind woke up. She had to move. Now. She didn’t know why, but she felt as if the ice wall had come alive, as if she could feel the beat of its heart. And she knew it was about to fall.

  She was right.

  Before she could get there, the wall melted into a pool of water and crashed against her feet, almost knocking her to the floor.

  The Frost Mages struggled to rebuild it but to no avail. They weren’t fast enough. Could never be fast enough.

  Fireballs flew through the air, knocking Jovi’s people to the ground with sickening screams and loud crunches. Her stomach twisted.

  Her necklace heated and heated some more until it burned against her chest.

  She touched it, and a pink bubble circled them.

  A necklace filled with power, indeed! Jovi marveled.

  Belisandre growled. “What is this
? Who has done this?”

  Jovi’s hands—along with the rest of her body—shook with adrenaline but still she smirked, unable to do much else. “I did. And, I’d like you to think twice before you try to hurt my people again.”

  Belisandre glared. “I would not have to hurt you or your people if your King and the Frost Mages hadn’t killed my father.”

  Jovi’s jaw dropped open. “What is she talking about?” She searched her father’s face but could see he hadn’t a clue either.

  King Ryan stepped forward. “Belisandre? What are you talking about?”

  Malador came to Jovi’s side but focused on Belisandre. “Your father. Who was he… Ahh.” He rubbed his forehead. “You look so familiar, and yet so very different. And, using a different name, aren’t you Isla?”

  With a smile, she bowed her head. “Yes. I no longer honor that name. It died the day my father did. The day King Ryan made sure he died.” She sneered. “Yes, he snuck into the castle and killed his firstborn, but he wasn’t stable then. He needed help, not death.”

  It hit her then. Belisandre, whom her father had thought had been an ally, had always been their enemy. Maybe not from day one, as she’d worked in the castle before her father had attacked, but she’d been working against them for quite some time now. Had to have been. And King Ryan had continued to trust her, to hold her in his confidences, even after he’d sent her away. At least that is what Jovi had always assumed.

  She’d been right.

  So had all the gossip mills throughout the castle.

  Another of her father’s mistakes coming back to slap them all in the face.

  King Ryan deflated and his chin hit his chest. “All these years. I thought you were my friend. I kept you informed of all the happenings, but you used the information to plan your attack.”

  A cold smile crept over Belisandre’s face. She clapped in slow succession. “Bravo. I’m amazed at how fast you figured all of that out.” Sarcasm dripped from her tone.

  King Ryan went quiet, nothing more to say in light of this disheartening news. Jovi shook with the force of her power.