Page 106 of Circle of Shadows
She thought of how Daemon looked whenever he climbed to the top of a tree, smiling as if the heavens replenished him. How he’d become wild again in Takish Gorge, speaking with the alpha wolf. And how he’d somehow jolted her from the Dragon Prince’s hold, through sheer determination in their gemina bond.
In a sky littered with asteroids, he was the North Star.
Sora’s stomach fluttered, as if it were full of dragonflies. It was a new feeling that she didn’t quite understand, but what she did know was this: “No one is like Wolf.”
Broomstick nodded solemnly.
“You two made a bold move by saving me,” Sora said. “Now let me make it worth it. I have a plan, but I need you to convince the Council and spread the word to the other taigas. They won’t believe it, coming from me.”
“Tell me what I need to do.”
Sora pulled up another chair. “I assume Wolf explained how ryuu magic works?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Now, there’s no way the taigas are going to be able to match the ryuu in a fight. Prince Gin and his army are on the edge of Jade Forest; they’ll be here within hours, and even if I could teach everyone how to command ryuu magic, there simply isn’t enough time for them to learn and master it.”
Broomstick’s knuckles whitened as he squeezed the armrest on his chair. “This doesn’t sound too promising.”
“Exactly,” Sora said. “That’s why we can’t actually fight. We have to stop the battle before it ever begins, before they can overwhelm us and conduct the Ceremony of Two Hundred Hearts. We have to undermine the ryuu’s Sight.”
“What do you mean?”
Sora held her hand in front of her. “Right now, there is emerald-colored dust swirling in the air. The ryuu have to be able to see it in order to command it to do things. But if we blind them, they won’t have magic. However, we will. Or, worst case, we fight hand to hand, and the odds are even. Better for us, actually, because we outnumber them.”
Broomstick relaxed his hold on the armrest and leaned forward. “So how do we blind all of them? We can’t just poke out the ryuu’s eyes individually when they march on the main gates. I have a feeling the Dragon Prince won’t takewell to that kind of welcome.”
She stood from her chair and walked over to the window, which had a view of Rose Palace on the top of the hill. It glimmered as if it were the crown of all of Kichona. “I do have something in mind, if I can get it to work. It involves breaking off a huge chunk of crystal, floating it to the gates of the Citadel, and raising it at just the right angle in the sun when the ryuu arrive.”
“You’re going to tear apart Empress Aki’s castle to use it as a giant magnifying glass?” His eyes were wide.
“If I can control the magic,” Sora said. “I have no idea if I’m strong enough. But yes, that’s the plan.”
Broomstick chuckled despite himself. “If anyone can pull this off, it’s you, Spirit.”
She didn’t laugh, though. She kept her gaze on Rose Palace. “Yes, well... Let’s hope that’s true.”
Chapter Sixty-One
Fairy startled awake and sat straight up. Her mouth tasted like sand. And everything was too bright.
She squinted at all the white around her.Where am I?
Everything that had happened at Copper Bluff came rushing back to her. The invisible ryuu putting her in a headlock. Wolf breaking Prince Gin’s spell. Spirit, giving her rira and promising she would be all right.
That must mean she was somewhere safe, right? Because Spirit had been bad but then she was good. She must have been, if Fairy was still alive.
She frowned. She was so confused.
Am I back at the Citadel?But no, it was white here, and everything at the Citadel was black.
Except the infirmary. The inside of the Society infirmary was white. But how would she have gotten back here?
Fairy shoved aside the thin blanket that covered her. She threw her legs over the cot and stood up.
Rather, shetriedto stand up. But her muscles were as wobbly as yuzu jelly. She grabbed for the rails on the side of the cot, missed, and fell to the ground with a crash.
No one ran to her aid. No doctors. No nurses.
