“What rage?” Maija asked, pausing at the door to Nadir’s office.
Anders flushed, his cheeks turning a shade darker. He had told Maija everything, except about the orcs and the uncontrollable rage that consumed him when he used the corrupt power. “I didn’t mention it before because, well, because I’m still struggling with it and I didn’t want you to be afraid.”
“Rage?” Maija asked, pinching her eyebrows together in surprise.
Anders nodded, “When I used the energy from the crystal in Lazuran’s pommel, it did something to me, something far stronger than the urges I feel to use it. I already told you I did a terrible thing, but Merglan’s influence, it corrupted me, and I felt what it was like to be him. I felt the rage and hatred that drives Merglan to do the things he does, and I,” Anders paused, his chin quivering, “I liked it at the time.”
He watched as Maija’s face turned from baffled to scared, just as she’d looked when she saw that he was drawn to Lazuran. Anders thought she might run, seeing the monster growing inside him, but she didn’t. He could tell she was at a loss for words, so he continued, “The sword, it whispers to my subconscious, trying to get me to use it again, but I’m afraid of what it might do to me if I answer. I can’t let the corruption tear me away from the two I love most. That’s why I need you, you and Zahara are the only ones who can pull me out when I start to lean in. That’s the difference between Merglan and me. You are the reason why I’m not already going insane as he did.”
Anders saw something come over Maija altering her expression from fear to one of joy. She smiled. Anders eyed her in confusion as she reached out and grabbed hold of his hand. Shaking his head, he asked, “Why are you smiling? I just told you that I think Merglan is trying to make me into what he has become. That’s why he fed me his rage.”
“I’m not smiling because Merglan’s trying to influence you, I’m smiling because you just told me,” she trailed off, grinning.
Anders shook his head slightly trying to see what she was getting at, then it hit him. His mouth gaped, and he realized what words he’d chosen to describe her and Zahara. As she waited for him to speak, he turned and pulled the door to the office open, saying quickly, “Yeah, well we’ve got to find that diagram. Ivan’s life could be at stake.” Wincing at how poorly he’d handled the situation, Anders glanced awkwardly at Maija.
She’d twisted the bottom of her shirt around her finger and when Anders’ eyes moved to look at what she was doing, she quickly brushed her shirt flat, and asked, “What did it look like?”
Refocusing on finding the diagram, he said, “It’s a small piece of paper. It was a blank, torn from Merglan’s journal. I drew the diagram on it. We were looking at on one of these desks,” he stepped toward one of the four desks in Nadir’s office.
“Why didn’t you just keep the journal,” Maija asked, picking loose papers up by the stack and flipping through them.
“I only saw it once, and I had poured through that thing several times, so I thought maybe magic was involved. I didn’t know whether it would disappear. That’s why I copied it down on a blank page.”
“That’s what you were doing up so late that night,” Maija said. Anders caught her eyeing him and shot her a quick grin.
“Here it is,” Anders said, pulling the parchment from beneath several maps spread out across a desktop.
Handing it to Maija, he watched over her shoulder as she examined the sketch. After a moment, she rubbed her forehead, “Looks like gibberish to me.”
When she handed it back to him, he folded it and tucked it into his side pocket. He glanced around the room to make sure there wasn’t anything else he was forgetting to do, then looked at Maija. His gaze met hers, and he felt as if her amber eyes were speaking to him, telling him she would stay by his side no matter what. He felt a warmth welling inside him as their stare lingered, each waiting for the other to make the first move. In an instant, a serious look returned to Maija’s eyes and Anders’ mind turned to the dragons waiting outside at the edge of the angry crowd.
“What is it?” he asked.
“The mob,” she said. “They’ve gone silent.”
“It could be Nadir; let’s get back to the court.”
Anders led the way back down the flight of stairs and out of Nadir’s home. Zahara and Raffa sat with their backs to the tree, watching the crowd. Grabbing Anders by the hand, Maija motioned for him to wait. Anders watched as she leaned her ear toward the mass of people.
“What is it?” he asked.
Shushing him with her finger, Maija observed with her remarkable hearing. “That elf from the High Council,” Maija said. “He’s addressing the crowd.”
“Well, what are we waiting for?” Anders asked, moving toward Zahara. “We should go to the steps and hear what he has to say before we give this to Nadir.”
“No,” Maija said sternly, causing Anders to stop. “They aren’t speaking kindly of you for leaving with the elves to fight Merglan. I think your presence there might fuel the crowd’s reaction; things could become even more hostile.”
“Really?” Anders asked. Maija shushed him again. He waited for several minutes while she observed and repeated important aspects of the Councilman’s speech to the crowd. He gathered from what Maija told him, that the Council saw Nadir’s choice to leave for battle as a rash decision. Nadir had taken nearly half the elven army with him, and now their kingdom was suffering gruesome attacks at the hands of their enemies. They blamed everything on Nadir and used the storm over the city as proof that even the magic had turned on them. The Council claimed that Nadir had acted outside his rank when he used his kingly authority before being properly crowned. Since he’d cause such grievous ramifications before his coronation, the Council was denying him the throne and withdrawing his command.
Once Maija had finished relaying the information to Anders, he heard the roar of the crowd resume. Cheers in support of the Council overpowered the “boos.” Anders’ heart sank when he realized his hopes for returning in full force to Southland had been squashed. With Nadir once again denied his birthright, he couldn’t order the elven army into action and, from the sound of it, most of those in the street supported the Council’s decision.
As the crowd began to disperse, Anders and Maija flew the short distance to the elven courthouse where members of the Council stood. Landing on the steps, Anders noted that the elves wearing red shirts lingered, holding their fists up toward him. He finally realized that they were elves loyal to Nadir. The red shirts were a show of support for their cause.
Without giving the members of the High Council a moment’s notice, Anders and Maija rushed into the court building. They ran through the vast open hall, stopping to search for Nadir. Turning, Anders heard Nadir call down to them from above. Looking up, he saw his friend motioning for them to come upstairs. Anders followed Maija now, as she saw the way up the stairs to the balcony where he stood. Anders attempted to keep up at first but knew her elven speed was impossible for him to match. He caught up to them on the second-story landing. Nadir and Maija greeted each other for the second time.
“Come with me. We must talk in private,” he said, walking briskly toward another room on the second floor. Closing the door after them, Anders turned to see Nadir latch it shut and look eagerly to his companions.
“Now, will you tell how the heck you ended up here without Ivan?” Nadir asked, stepping closer to Anders.
Anders then understood that Nadir had no idea that he and Ivan had faced Merglan alone. Anders explained what happened after Lageena transported them to the castle, wrapping up with his unexpected arrival with Zahara in Nagano, only to find Maija there with Raffagaun. As he hastily finished his summary, Anders asked, “But Nadir, how do you know this paper will save Ivan’s life?”
Nadir described in greater detail how he led the retreat, his battle with Lageena, and her eventual death. He told them how he was forced to return with the dwarfs to gather more soldiers for their return. He told them how Natalia had stayed behind with Remli’s daughter and Solomon to attempt a rescue, suspecting that Merglan was keeping Anders and Ivan prisoner in the Kingston castle. “I tried to reach her just now, but she’s not responding,” he said. “Last I talked to her, she was going to embark on her mission soon, but she doesn’t know that you and Zahara made it out alive.”
“And you think you can crack the code on this?” Anders asked, pointing to the parchment.
“I don’t know the answer, but I think there’s someone else here in the city who does,” Nadir said, stroking his chin. “Follow me,” he said as he exited the room. Both Nadir and Maija rushed ahead at superhuman speed.
Anders tried to follow. He caught up with Maija as she stood looking out the door and beyond the steps. He followed her gaze and saw Nadir, “What’s he doing?”
“Informing his soldiers of his plan, those still willing to follow him that is,” Maija said. “He told us to wait here.”
Anders nodded, taking the opportunity to catch his breath.
When Nadir re-entered the building, Anders saw the armored elves move away from the steps, calling for the elves in red to gather around. “Nadir,” he said. “Aside from the kurr and this storm building overhead, what’s going on here?”
“Things changed while we were away, Anders,” Nadir said. “I’m afraid my father’s death and my reaction to pursue his killer caused a divide in our people’s political views. I could feel it among our soldiers while we campaigned in Southland. It’s why I didn’t stay with Natalia, though I wanted to. Our commanding officers threatened my expulsion from the kingdom. I fear the High Council was influencing them even after they left the city. Members of my army, high-ranking officers felt their duty to the cause was complete when Lageena died. For them, vengeance drove them south with us.”
“Even after seeing the effects Merglan’s had over Southland?” Anders asked.
