Hell's Ascendant (Mantles of Power Book 3) Read online

  “Ahh,” Isalla murmured, looking at the scorched area much less happily. In the heavens, pyres for the fallen were the norm, since they didn’t like the idea of graveyards, but they certainly weren’t pleasant.

  “It also ensured that they wouldn’t easily rise as undead. Not a major concern this far north, but never discount the possibility,” Vinara added calmly, looking at the spot and clicking her tongue. “I think it’s why pyres are the norm where I come from.”

  “I’ll believe that,” Yain murmured, then looked up and asked, “Could someone go tell Kim and Emma that dinner is about ready? While it’s hard to burn soup, I don’t want to risk it this time.”

  “I’ll go,” Isalla said quickly, relieved to have an excuse to look in on Kitania and Eziel. No matter how much time had passed, she just couldn’t help a nagging sense of suspicion where Eziel was concerned.

  “I’ll accompany you, since you just woke up,” Rose said, smiling as she nodded at the others. “We’ll be back shortly.”

  “You’d better, or we’ll start eating without you,” Maura chimed in cheerfully.

  “Don’t you dare,” Isalla replied, glowering at the elf in mock anger. Or mostly mock anger, as much of a void as her stomach felt like. “I could eat just about anything right now, so if you eat my portion…”

  “So hurry!” Maura replied, grinning in return.

  Isalla huffed to herself, looking at Rose as she asked, “Lead the way, if you would? Since people are making threats, I don’t dare take my time.”

  “This way,” Rose said calmly, leading the way toward the stream.

  The ground was mostly uneven, which made Isalla wonder why the spot they’d camped in was flat, but she didn’t ask as they approached the nearby trees, their trunks often twisted into strange shapes rather than straight. A tiny part of her wondered why the forest wasn’t named the Tangled Forest or the like, but it was mostly idle curiosity. The sound of water was growing louder as they approached, too.

  “How’d the last couple of days go?” Isalla asked at last, startled to realize she was somewhat nervous. “While I was unconscious, I mean.”

  “The person who attacked us got away, the bandits scattered, and aside from the drake, things have been quiet and almost serene. I don’t trust it,” Rose said, shaking her head unhappily as she glanced to either side. “The bolt that was used was heavily enchanted, and I don’t know why it was used on the bandits rather than one of us.”

  “It’s possible that whoever attacked thought they might have some information and didn’t want to risk it getting out,” Isalla volunteered, wincing as she hesitated before reluctantly adding, “Plus, we were in armor, and none of the others were as close as the bandits. It’s possible that whoever it was wanted to hit us, if they’re an angel.”

  “That doesn’t make me happy, but it’s very possible,” Rose agreed, leading the way past several trees. “Now, we found a decent spot where the water isn’t flowing as much, and that’s where we’ve been bathing. The water’s cold, though, so most of us don’t bathe for long. Kim seems to like using magic to mitigate the cold, though, which means she takes a lot longer than the rest of us.”

  “I’m not surprised. Remember her bathing room?” Isalla asked, prompting laughter from Rose, which made Isalla smile widely. Laughter was good for her heart, and Isalla’s tension eased as she continued. “Besides, I can’t say as I blame her, considering…”

  Isalla’s voice trailed off as they came into sight of the river and the pool in question. To Isalla it looked like there’d been a sinkhole next to the stream that it’d filled in, making a relatively calm area alongside the narrow stream, which was no more than twenty feet across and relatively shallow. It also looked quite brisk, sending shivers down Isalla’s spine and instantly quelling any thought of taking a bath herself.

  In the pool were Kitania and Eziel, both of them naked, but still in their disguises, while a glittering shell of blue sigils hovered around them. That was likely the spell to protect them from cold, Isalla realized, and she blushed as she looked at the two women, pausing despite herself. Their equipment was in easy reach on the shore, but neither appeared worried about anyone looking at them.

  Kitania’s skin was as flawless as always, though the human-like hue still disconcerted Isalla somewhat, as did the draconic tail behind her. A tiny part of Isalla wondered if the demoness was wearing the tail armor even now. The sight of Eziel next to Kitania sparked still more jealousy, though, and Isalla had trouble keeping from glaring at the angel. The dark-haired woman looked perfectly calm as she helped rinse Kitania’s hair, her pale, athletic figure so much more solidly built than Isalla’s was. Eziel was entirely unlike Isalla or Rose, who had petite and voluptuous figures, respectively, and a tiny, tiny part of Isalla feared that despite everything Kitania might find herself attracted to Eziel.

  As she considered, Eziel glanced up and smiled slightly as she caught sight of Isalla and Rose, speaking just loud enough for Isalla to hear her. “Milady, it appears Isabel woke at last, and that we have company.”

  “What?” Kitania exclaimed, quickly trying to claw back the hair that was hanging in her eyes, then smiled brilliantly as she caught sight of Isalla, something which eased Isalla’s jealousy immensely. Kitania’s tone was enthusiastic as she exclaimed, “Why, it is you! How are you feeling, Isa? I wasn’t sure when you’d wake, and it just figures that you’d do it while I was away.”

  “I’m well enough. Yain sent me to tell you that dinner was ready,” Isalla said, a little bemused as she saw Kitania obviously debating what to do. The demoness looked torn between rushing over to Isalla and staying where she was. “Isn’t that cold, even with magic to mitigate it?”

  “No, not really. I mean, it’s a little cool, but you get used to it, and I’ve experienced worse. This isn’t even snowmelt, which means it’s not nearly as cold as it could be,” Kitania replied and glanced at Eziel as she asked, “Are you done washing? I think this is good enough for me, but don’t want to rush you.”

  “I’m ready whenever you are, milady,” Eziel replied, stepping toward the edge of the pool and carefully climbing out, water dripping off her body quickly. The angel pulled out a couple of thin towels and stepped to the side, waiting as Kitania stepped out of the water, then began drying Kitania off. The demoness looked far more comfortable with it than Isalla expected, which heightened her unease, if only a little.

  “Mm, good. Well, you’re probably feeling starved, so I don’t want you to have to wait too long,” Kitania said, eying Isalla as she smiled warmly. “Do be cautious, though. You haven’t had practically anything in your stomach for a while, so you’ll probably want to take it easy at first. How’re you, Rose?”

  “Well enough, now that Isabel is awake. I’ll admit to having been concerned,” Rose said, but Isalla saw her cheeks color as Kitania snorted softly.

  “Concerned? I suppose that’s one way to put it,” Kitania said, shaking her head and turning to pick up her things. Isalla tried to keep from staring at the demoness, but couldn’t quite restrain herself, no matter how much she tried. “Either way, at least you’re alright. I was a little worried at first, but once you made it past the first fifteen minutes or so, I was confident you’d be alright. I’ve seen you in worse shape before, after all.”

  “True enough. Not that I was aware either time,” Isalla said, her pleasure fading as she remembered falling into the hells. Her smile faded as she murmured, “Haral has many things to answer for.”

  “That she does,” Rose said, her voice soft, but her anger was obvious as she gripped Isalla’s hand tightly. “I wouldn’t be surprised if she was behind this attack.”

  “It’s possible, but don’t make the mistake of assuming that she’s behind everything,” Kitania cautioned, a frown flickering across her face. “They have to be a large organization to do everything that we know they’ve done, so ascribing everything to a single individual is rather shortsighted, I think.”
/>   “You have a point,” Isalla admitted, chastened by the warning. She’d thought the same before, but at the same time, there was an emotional part of her that wanted to blame all the poor experiences she’d been through on Haral. It was simply easier to blame the people she knew about, not the faceless ones hidden in the shadows.

  Kitania nodded slightly, slipping on her clothing with Eziel’s assistance. The demoness didn’t take much time to prepare, which Isalla regretted ever so slightly. She was probably just frustrated due to how long they’d been apart, plus her near-death experience, Isalla realized.

  “Regardless, she does have much to answer for,” Rose murmured, her eyes narrowing as she admitted, “I just worry about what she might be doing now.”

  “We can only deal with problems within reach. We’ll get there, Rose,” Kitania said, smiling encouragingly as she reached out to pat both Rose and Isalla’s hands. “Now… let’s go get dinner.”

  “That sounds wonderful,” Isalla said, her stomach gurgling audibly.

  Even Eziel giggled at that.

  Chapter 17

  A young boy turned the corner at a run and didn’t stop in time, hitting Haral hard. Her breath left her all at once, and she barely managed to brace herself in time to keep from being knocked over.

  “Oof!” the boy said, gasping as he bounced off Haral and fell onto the ground, blinking as he looked up, his blue eyes widening as he saw her. “Oh no! My apologies, milady. I didn’t mean to run into you!”

  Haral blinked at his surprisingly formal speech, taking in the young angel, his wings splayed behind him and his hair an unruly mop of red curls. He had a scattering of freckles, which she’d noticed was common to the Emberborn family, and his clothing was reasonably nice, though it was currently dirty and torn in a couple of places. She guessed that he was no more than ten or twelve years old, too.

  “It’s alright, though I am wondering why you were in such a hurry, young man,” Haral replied mildly, raising an eyebrow as she rubbed her stomach where he’d hit her. “Your speech is also a bit more formal than I’d expect from someone your age.”

  “Ah, I was just… upset, I suppose, and not watching where I was going,” the boy replied in embarrassment, clearing his throat as he stood, brushing himself off and fluttering his wings to get them back into order. He stood straight, then bowed before Haral as he continued. “As for my speech, I’ve been taught that a member of House Emberborn is to present as good of an image as possible to others. Alas, my behavior reflected poorly on me just now.”

  “I suppose so,” Haral murmured, her smile widening ever so slightly, and her sense of guilt where her orders were concerned weighing on her. She should just cut off her discussion with the boy here, but at the same time, she really didn’t want to. She’d always loved children, after all. After a moment of hesitation, she made a decision and spoke. “My name is Haral, originally of the Evergardens. What about you?”

  “I’m Emanuel Emberborn the Fifth, Lady Haral,” the young man said respectfully, his cheeks flushing as he hesitated, then asked guiltily, “I don’t suppose you’re going to tell my parents, are you? I’m truly sorry about what happened…”

  “It isn’t that,” Haral quickly reassured him, smiling as she looked back toward the Emberborn compound, then asked gently, “I’ve heard of your family, so… what were you in such a hurry to get away from?”

  “Oh, um… I just…” Emanuel hesitated, flushing bright red as he shuffled his feet, then gritted his teeth and answered. “It’s just some of the other boys. They decided that we should have a contest to see which of us was best with a sword, and some of them were more violent than they should’ve been. They can be mean when adults aren’t around.”

  “That doesn’t sound good,” Haral said, a frown flickering across her face. “I’d think your peers would support you, not be cruel.”

  “Oh, they aren’t cruel, at least not on purpose!” Emanuel quickly protested, shaking his head as he gave a momentary smile. “It’s just… well, I’m sure you’ve heard the rumors about my cousin going missing, along with Ember?”

  “Ah… well, yes, of course,” Haral agreed, only barely keeping her surprise from showing on her face. She had heard the rumors about Roselynn’s disappearance going around the city, but she was startled that he’d bring it up. “I wasn’t sure if they were true, but I’ve heard something about it.”

  “Yes… well, we’re not certain what happened yet, but she did go missing, and it has the house elders worried. They don’t want the other houses to think that we’ve declined in strength, so they’ve been pushing all of us to improve ourselves,” Emanuel said, running his fingers through his hair as he shook his head, sighing. “The problem is that they emphasize swordsmanship more than magic, and my talent is more with the latter than the former. All of us are trying to live up to our bloodline, but it’s… it’s hard, you know?”

  “I can’t say that I fully understand, since I’m not from a family like yours,” Haral temporized, shaking her head in faint amusement.

  Emanuel flushed and looked away in embarrassment, clearing his throat as he spoke. “Oh, I’m sorry, Lady Haral… I shouldn’t have complained about all of this to you, not after running into you. It’s terribly selfish of me.”

  “In all honesty, I find it interesting to hear about. While families like your own aren’t that uncommon, those of us outside them don’t really know what it’s like for people who grew up there,” Haral said, hesitating a bare moment, then smiled as she asked, “Would you care to accompany me for a bit, Emanuel? I can at least listen to you and give you a chance to unwind, hm? Perhaps I can even learn a little from you.”

  “I… well, I think that’d be nice, Lady Haral,” Emanuel said, flushing slightly as he looked up at her, and Haral resisted the urge to smile. She’d learned long before that men, especially young men, had trouble denying the requests of a beautiful woman. The only question where Emanuel had been concerned was that he might be too young, but it appeared not.

  “Would you care to accompany me to the park, then?” Haral asked politely, smiling now.

  “Most certainly, Lady Haral!” Emanuel said more enthusiastically, and the young man offered his arm to her, much like an older gentleman would.

  Haral resisted the urge to laugh as she took his arm, and he began leading the way toward one of the nearby parks. Fortunately, he appeared to be heading for a more secluded one, which made Haral happier.

  “I am curious… why is your family so concerned about Roselynn’s disappearance? I know it’s bad, but I don’t understand why they’d be pushing you so hard,” Haral said, frowning slightly to herself.

  “Well, Ember has long been a very prestigious weapon for the family, as a powerful enough wielder is supposed to be almost on the level of an archangel. Sure, those who are chosen as its wielder make enormous sacrifices for the family, but it’s also an immense honor,” Emanuel said, and he hesitated before adding, “I met Roselynn once, you know. She wasn’t what I expected… she was calm, polite, and gave me a few pointers. If she’s dead, it’s a huge loss for the family, and no one wants that. However, at the same time, we have to do our part to protect the heavens. For a long time that’s been the responsibility of Ember’s wielder, but now… well, we’re all going to have to do our part, at least according to my father.”

  “I see. That’s admirable of them, even if it’s a little hard on you,” Haral said, a ripple of surprise rushing through her. When she’d learned that it was a relationship between Isalla and Roselynn that had led to their disgrace, a part of her had believed that it meant that Roselynn’s family was decadent as well. From what Emanuel was saying, that might not be the case, which made her feelings even more confused.

  “It’s supposed to be, but it doesn’t help when all of us are being pushed to excel at once,” Emanuel said, sighing deeply as he turned a corner to approach the park at last. It was a relatively small nook nestled between the manors of the upper
class and was kept immaculate even when there weren’t many visitors. There were several benches around the park, including one with a decent view over the city, and he escorted Haral over to it, allowing her to sit first as he spoke. “I think some of them are lashing out unconsciously because of it. I know I’ve been frustrated, and I’ve snapped at my sister a few times. It isn’t becoming of me, but… what else can I do?”

  “I think you just need time to adjust. Not everyone adapts well to change, and it can be hard for any of us, even those who should know better,” Haral said, smiling slightly as she relaxed into the bench and he took a seat next to her. “Did you consider that your elders might be just as out of sorts as you? Ember has been part of your family legacy for thousands of years, hasn’t it?”

  “That… well, perhaps that’s true,” Emanuel admitted, frowning as he thought about it, then shrugged and smiled helplessly. “I just don’t know what to do, aside from keeping going. If I don’t compete, my parents will be disappointed in me. Besides, what else can I do? It’s part of my responsibility to uphold the family’s honor and protect the heavens, even if I’m young.”

  “That’s an admirable goal, Emanuel,” Haral said, her smile growing gentler as she came to a decision. Her voice was calm as she nodded to him. “I think you should keep that in mind whenever you get frustrated. You’re the only one you can truly control, and you can always try to lead by example, hm? Make yourself into the best person you can manage, and from there things will work out how they will.”

  “Maybe so, but… it’s daunting for someone my age,” Emanuel said, flushing as he looked at the ground. “I feel strange even talking about it, honestly.”

  “Mm, then we should change the subject, shouldn’t we?” Haral said, sitting back on the bench as she smiled. “How about you tell me about your family? I’ve always wondered what it’s like growing up in a noble family, after all.”