The Summoners' Heir

Chapter 15: Your Queen Awaits

Good.

The Squaller was learning.

"Kapitan, report."

The sound of Raevsky's voice brought me back to the current situation. The captain replied, his voice as expressionless as the Darkling's eyes.

"Approximately thirty minutes into the crossing, we were set upon by a large flock of volcra. We were pinned down and sustained heavy casualties. I was fighting on the starboard side of the skiff. At that point, I saw..." the first army soldier hesitated, and when he spoke again, his voice conveyed such. " I don't know exactly what I saw. A blaze of light. Bright as noon, brighter. Like staring into the sun.

A gasp erupted from the crowd, which quickly evolved into muttering as thoughts were shared. The skiff survivors were nodding, Mother too, which I found unsettling. The Captain decided to continue his story.

"The volcra scattered, and the light disappeared. I ordered us back to drydock immediately."

"And the girl?" the Darkling inquired.

His contribution startled me. I'd almost forgotten he was here.

"I didn't see the girl, moi soverenyi."

I turned to the shadow summoner, a quick endeavour to gauge his reaction. His eyebrow quirked as he turned to the survivors. His voice rang out with a coolness that could have been interpreted as disinterest.

"Who actually saw what happened?"

The survivors broke out into anxious discussion amongst themselves. Then slowly, the Senior Cartographer stepped forward. Clearly afraid. His fingers plucked at his shredded coat - an attempt to calm his nerves. I guess I couldn't blame him.

"Tell us what you saw," said Raevsky.

The Cartographer licked his lips. "We... we were under attack. There was fighting all around. Such noise. So much blood... One of the boys, Alexei, was taken. It was terrible, terrible."

Alexei. I remembered Mother mentioning him. A talented mapmaker. She had always said his death was a waste. At least he wasn't Grisha. Now that would have been a waste.

The senile Cartographer cleared his throat. "They were everywhere. I saw one go after her-"

"Who?" Raevsky interrupted.

"Alina... Alina Starkov, one of my assistants.

Starkov.

The Darkling's head shot up at the name.

Oh no. I would be in trouble, big trouble. I slowly turned my head to the dark General, knowing what was to come. He was facing me now with a knowing gaze. His orbs of coal were penetrating my being. Relentless. It was as if I was a piece of glass that could be shattered if his stare reached the right frequency. He knew now. There was no going back. I returned his gaze and was surprised by what was reflected at me. His glare did not hold the heated anger I was expecting. Sure, he was fuming, but there was a determination. There was a newfound alacrity that had sparked within him. Triumph, even.

"Starkov," he mouthed at me. But no sound escaped his lips. No one saw.

Zoya smirked and leaned over to whisper to her friend. I could feel my teeth grinding in frustration. How nice it was to know that Grisha could still sustain their snobbery even in a situation like this.

"Go on," Raevsky persisted.

"I saw one go after her and the tracker," the Cartographer uttered, pointing to Mal.

"And where were you?" an angry woman cried.

Mother?

All eyes were on her now. She didn't seem to care.

"You saw the volcra attack us," she continued. "You saw that thing take Alexei. Why didn't you help?" she shrieked.

Damn, Mama.

"There was nothing I could do," the old man pleaded. "They were everywhere. It was chaos!"

"Alexei might still be alive if you'd gotten off your bony ass to help us!"

There was more gasping and laughter from the crowd. The Cartographer flushed in embarrassment and perhaps a little bit of anger. I could tell Mother instantly regretted her words due to the look on her face that emanated guilt.

"Enough!" Raevsky bellowed. "Tell us what you saw, Cartographer."

The crowd's laughter dissipated as the excuse of a man began to speak.

"The tracker went down. She was beside him. That thing, the volcra, was coming at them. I saw it on top of her, and then... she lit up."

The crowd roared with cries and jeers of disbelief. A few of them even laughed. Such small-minded scum.

"I saw it!" he shrieked over them. "Light came out of her!"

The Cartographer looked desperately to his fellow survivors, hoping for a semblance of support. Surprisingly, they responded to his cry for help with nods of acknowledgement.

"This is absurd!" Ugh! Zoya again. "What are you suggesting, old man? That you've found us a Sun Summoner?

"I'm not suggesting anything," he protested. "I'm only telling what I saw!"

"It's not impossible," said a Grisha in a purple kefta. A materialnik. "There are stories-"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Zoya cried, her voice taking a scornful tone. "The man's had his wits rattled by the volcra!"

Um... did she not see the others nodding?

Now the crowd was arguing. Fantastic

I could see Mother was tiring now. She knew she was Grisha. Mother knew this was coming. I could only imagine this was something she wanted to get over and done with. But then her eyes met mine, and she brightened up. I could see the longing, her desire to come to me. I felt that same pull. All I wanted to do was to run up to her and hold her tight. Hold her in my arms like the way she did for me. We kept our eyes on each other, and the Darkling noticed.

That's when it seemed like he decided to step in.

"Quiet."