Island of Exiles by Erica Cameron - Chapter 1 to 11

Chapter Four

Yorri stands at the outer edge of the western wall, his arms crossed and his gaze distant. Despite his promise after the fight with Aemon, I've seen him go distant like this too often the past few days. It's not an expression that makes me think he's contemplating the future—it looks a lot more like he's mourning the past.

Hopefully, in mourning he'll also learn how to let it go.

"Is there a purpose to us being here?" Yorri asks, finally looking at me.

"Yes, but I'm not telling you what it is." I'm not sure the plan to draw his magic out will work if he knows what I'm trying to do. If what I have in mind doesn't work today or over the next three weeks, then I can only hope that the Miriseh can pull out of him what his training masters and I couldn't. "You'll just have to trust me."

A shrug is all Yorri gives as a response. I take it as agreement.

I don't have Neeva's rusosa powers, so the danger I create has to be as real as it is controlled. For the first few hours of the day, we balance on the outer wall, hanging over the sheer one-hundred-foot drop inches to our left. Weaponless, we run drills that test Yorri's speed and agility, but after a while it's clear this isn't going to come close to scaring him. He trusts his balance and knows his body. He doesn't fear the fall. Or, rather, he doesn't fear the fall enough.

It's time to add the threat of iron.

Leaving him with orders to practice, I collect my weapons from the barracks and then run to the training yard. I help myself to a zeeka, a longer tudo sword, and an anto dagger. No one does more than raise an eyebrow to see me leaving the yard with more weapons than anyone but a rikinhisu mage can wield.

Silence is a habit ingrained by training and nature, and when I reach the top of the stairs to the north wall I'm glad of my overcaution. Tessen is on the wall walking toward Yorri. I hide behind a wide square pillar.

I know he usually stifles his senses within the city— keeping them all at full strength would probably drive him mad—but there's still not much of a chance he didn't hear my footsteps. I haven't spoken, so maybe he wrote off my footsteps as one of the guards on the wall.

Keeping my breaths as steady and even as possible to avoid drawing his attention, I freeze. I don't want to deal with him right now.

"There are easier places to train," he says. "Safer, too." Yorri scoffs. "What good will safety do me?"

"True." They're both silent for a moment before Tessen clears his throat. "Have you seen Khya?"

Blood and rot, what does he want now? Especially since he was named a kaigo-sei, he's been practically fought over for advice and companionship—in and out of bed. Why is he wasting time hunting me down?

"Not for an hour," Yorri says. "She went back into the city."

"After calling you reckless, probably. And you should listen. She's only trying to keep you safe."

"I'll keep that in mind, Nyshin-ten." The words are respectful, but the tone is much closer to how I usually talk to Tessen. "Did you need something from her?"

Tessen exhales. "I guess not. I'll be late if I don't leave now."

Yorri breaks the long silence, clearing his throat. "We'll see you tonight, then. I'm sure you'll be able to find Khya at dinner."

"And maybe she'll sit down to eat with me when kamidi lizards start flying like the mykyn." Tessen laughs, but it sounds wrong—tense and strained. Then he exhales, almost a sigh. "Be careful, Doseiku Yorri. I think your sister would find a way to blame me if you fell."