I held the ball of thread over the pond, and its waters rippled ever so subtly. As if in anticipation.
“Take me to the Holy Mountains.”
We followed the red thread and emerged deep in the forest, not far from the Holy Mountains. A journey, Takkan informed me, that usually took an entire morning on horseback.
The breach was a short trek away, but Takkan wanted to scout the area before going too close. “The demons know you’re back,” he explained darkly. “We can’t be too careful.”
He led me down a path that sloped into the mountain pass, and we ascended slowly, quietly. When at last the glow of the breach came into view, I caught my breath. I’d glimpsed it before in the mirror of truth, but up close it looked different.
It’s grown, I realized.
The breach now extended halfway up the tallest peak, as tall and wide as a willow tree. Scarlet light poured out of its crooked seam, like a wound that wept blood. Or a river of demon eyes.
I grabbed a low tree branch and hoisted myself up for a better look. At the breach’s base was a camp of sentinels and soldiers, forming a cordon around the mountain.
“Is it wise to have all these men here guarding against Bandur?” I asked Takkan. “If he can possess Qinnia…”
“He isn’t invincible,” said Takkan, “and he can’t stay far from the breach for long. After a few hours, he always comes back. The soldiers send word to Benkai whenever there’s movement, and whenever he returns. It’s harder to see when he leaves, since it’s usually at night.”
“He’s inside now,” I stated.
A nod.
That was a relief, but I still frowned. “I understand the patrols, but we don’t need this many soldiers to play watchman.”
“It turns out demons aren’t our only concern.” Takkan directed my attention back to the forest. “See those patches of scorched wood?”
I stepped up for a better vantage point, but I already knew what he was talking about. The mirror of truth had shown me, and I’d noticed the groves of charred trees when we first arrived. “That wasn’t Bandur?”
“No. It was local Kiatans.” Takkan lowered his voice. “Word is spreading that there is a demon in Gindara. Your father and brothers have done their best to contain it, but fear spreads faster than any fire. Since you’ve been away, many have come to the breach and tried to burn the evil out of the forest.”
I swallowed hard. It was only a matter of time before the whole country knew about Bandur. Deep down, that troubled me more than the Demon King himself.
“The soldiers are necessary reinforcements until we find a way to seal the breach,” said Takkan. “Your father’s permitted a pair of enchanters to come investigate the mountains. We’re hoping they can find a solution.”
Now that was a surprise. No enchanters had visited Kiata in centuries. “Are they at the breach?” I asked, leaping off the tree. “I’d like to meet—”
I halted midsentence. The air had changed. Gone was the heat, the sticky veneer of humidity. Cold needled my bare skin.
“Shiori…,” whispered the wind. “Shiori.”
The ground began to tremble. At first, it was only a vibration, rustling the trees nearby. Then a fierce tremor shook the earth. Birds shrieked, and rocks spilled from the mountainside, forcing the soldiers to scatter from their posts.
I bent my knees to catch my balance, and Kiki slipped back under Hasho’s hat. In the distance, the breach flashed red.
“SHIORI!” the wind whispered again, this time more urgently. “SHIORI!”
That was no wind. It was the demons. They knew I was here!
“The bloodsake has come,” they clamored.
“She has come to free us.
“We must wake the king….”
“I haven’t come to free you,” I hissed. I dared a step forward. “I’ve come to make sure you never get out.”
“We shall see.”
The demons’ anger pulsed under my feet, and I grabbed Takkan by the hand. Together we stumbled back a step, then another and another until the earth was still again and the cold dissipated.
“What was that?” Takkan asked.
I never got to reply. Because out of the trees there flew the largest, most feral-looking hawk I had ever seen, with tiger stripes on its burnished plumes and ears pointed like a cat’s. Kiki let out a gruesome shriek as its talons narrowly missed her, lifting the hat clean off my head instead.
“Heedi!” shouted an unseen voice. “What did I teach you about diving on our friends? Apologize at once.”
The hawk dipped its head at Kiki, then swooped down onto the arm of a young boy. A boy with a lopsided grin I would recognize anywhere.
“Gen!” I cried.
The sorcerer swept a bow. “My apologies for Enchantress Heedi. She gets excited when there’s demon activity. And thank goodness for it—otherwise, I would’ve missed you and Kiki! How well you both look, freshly exiled from the dragon realm.” He blew a kiss to my bird. Especially you, Kiki.
You can hear me! the paper bird exclaimed, instantly forgiving Gen for the hawk incident. I’d been wondering.
“I’ve always had an affinity for birds,” Gen confessed. “They’re often smarter than humans.”
Kiki preened, and I sighed at how easily my paper bird was charmed.
You look well, too, she said.
It was true. Gen’s cheeks bloomed with health, his curls were neatly combed, and he’d even donned Kiatan robes. But for his blue eyes, he might have passed for one of us.
“Come,” said Gen, “let’s chat a little farther from the breach. The demons have been testy all day.”
“You all know each other?” said Takkan, more aware than ever he couldn’t hear Kiki’s side of the conversation.
“Know each other?” Gen said. “We shared a dungeon in Ai’long. After all we’ve been through together, Shiori’s practically my aunt.”
“Aunt?” I scoffed. “You spent twenty years of your life as a statue. Just because you didn’t age doesn’t mean you’re younger than I am.”
“But I look younger. Especially when you’re wearing that.” Gen scrutinized my clothes. “You were far better dressed in Ai’long, even when the dragons were trying to kill you.”
“They’re my brother’s clothes,” I replied, snatching my hat back from the hawk. “It isn’t easy sneaking out when you’re a princess. I thought I looked convincing.”
Gen wrinkled his nose. “Maybe to the soldiers. But not to me.” He proved his point by gesturing at my satchel, casually hidden beneath my cloak. “You still have the pearl. Are you sure it’s wise carrying it around?”