Quinn answers, “This is the only chance we have to escape our bondage.”
“But haven’t you already escaped it? If you’re here?”
Quinn reaches out and sets a cold hand against your cheek.
“Feel that?” she asks. “I’m here and not. Alive and dead. If I can help you here, I’ll go back to our world as one of the revived. The revived have power in our world. Some do not return. The rumor is that they go on to other worlds. But I will not do that. My friends and family are waiting for me. I will return and I will stand up to our former masters.”
Masters. It’s not hard to figure out she’s referring to the gods. In this world, they’re powerful allies for you and your people. Quinn doesn’t see them that way. She clearly thinks them cruel. You imagine they are. A shiver runs down your spine as you recall the Madness.
“So we finish the Races. And then you…go back?”
“I revive. There are only twenty or thirty revived ones in our world. Some end up joining the masters. The taste of power is too tempting. But there are some…” She pauses, and it’s like she’s looking down into her world. “Some fight for the enslaved. I intend to join them.”
You nod, even though it makes as much sense as the stars. Deep down, you realize you’re afraid of Quinn. You remember the footage of other Races that involved the Madness. Some riders performed impossible feats. Others were shoved over cliffs. You know your mother’s gift will likely prove useful, but until then, you’re just hoping to keep her happy and on your side.
“And your world, is it really so bad?”
“My world…” Quinn shakes her head, struggling. “I’ve been a slave all my life. Your gods? They are cruel to us. They use us. The place we live is nothing like this one.”
For a time, the two of you are silent. First light is striking the mountains, working its way over the great iron shards, dripping down into the waiting valleys. The two of you leave the lovely sight and start making your way back to camp.
“Your days are shorter here.”
“Are they?”
Quinn nods. “Your nights, too.”
“We’re a fast-moving people. I guess the world is just trying to keep up.”
She smiles at that. You’re almost back to camp when sunlight spills over the plateau. Bravos is separating his equipment, getting ready for the second births. Beyond him, you see light catch the ashes. The wind whispers of creation. You pause at the edge of camp and watch as the ashes turn and stir, then whip up with devilish force. Quinn watches beside you, fascinated.
You can’t imagine what it’s like to see the magic for the first time. Somewhere along the way, this all became normal to you. It would be nice, you think, to see it again for the first time.
Dark forms rise out of the storms and sunlight fractures against the swirling wind, bright to the point of blinding. Quinn shields her eyes. You do not.
Both phoenixes stagger free, glorious and full-formed.
You’re surprised to see that your horse has a slightly darker coat than it did the day before. Normally, their color doesn’t change unless you drastically alter the alchemy. It’s still silver-maned, but the rest of its coat looks closer to char than the usual cloudy gray. Bravos’s horse stomps and snorts until your phoenix startles. You watch as it trots a safe distance away.
“That’s amazing,” Quinn says.
“It’s my favorite thing in the world.”
Bravos looks over. “What?”
You shake yourself and remember he can’t see Quinn. “Nothing, love.”
He raises an eyebrow before crossing over to his horse. You can hear him whispering the same phrase over and over as you sort through your own supplies. When the creature is finally calm, he hefts up a saddle and sets to work on the girth and then the bridle. You’ve unearthed your own saddle and started walking over as he mounts. Those gorgeous arms flex as he swings gracefully onto the phoenix’s back.
Bravos adjusts his hair before glancing your way. He’s got that determined look that you’re so proud to see. He’s a champion craving victory, and your first step toward that victory couldn’t have been more perfect. Your mother would caution you. It is called the Races for a reason. Champions aren’t crowned at the end of the first day.
“I’m going to scout the valley,” Bravos says. “Get a look at who has the early lead.”
“Go ahead. There’s a pack formed. It’d be good to know who’s in it. Looks like Etzli is starting out in the lead today. I’ll catch up to you in a clockturn or two.”
He nods back, and urges his phoenix into a trot. Dust trails him, rising like smoke. There’s nothing finer in the world than a man like him on a horse. After a few seconds, you turn back to the task at hand. Your phoenix has wandered off toward the nearest cliffs.
You click your tongue in greeting. It’s a sound this phoenix has heard in every life, through every death. Digging into a pocket, you hold out a baked-red tomato. But when you set a probing hand on the horse’s wide flank, he startles. A series of unsettled snorts follow. Even his ears are swiveling. “Whoa, boy. It’s just me, boy. Just me.”
Carefully, you circle round and approach from the front. It’s a bright morning, and you have to squint as you walk into the sunlight, letting your eyes adjust. But your feet stick to the ground. An unconscious hand drifts up to cover your mouth. No, no, no.
Quinn takes an instinctual step in your direction. “What’s wrong?”
The fruit slips from your hand, kicking up dust as it falls and rolls.
“He’s blind.”
“You can tell that just by looking at him?”
Tears streak down your face. “His eyes. He has no eyes, Quinn. I must have…Somehow I must have messed up the mixture. The wrong components or added them too late. Quinn, I blinded him. We can’t ride blind. That’s not—I’ve never trained for that.”
The horse is feeding off your distress. It’s impossible to calm down, though. You’re finally in the Races and you made the biggest mistake of your life. The horse neighs, but you don’t have any words of comfort to offer. This is unthinkable.
“So what do we do?” Quinn asks. “There has to be something we can do.”
Bravos. Of course. You need Bravos.
“My horse can follow his,” you say, turning. “We need Bravos.”
The resurgent hope brings you stumbling back to reality. You ignore your unsettled phoenix and start walking toward the open plateau. Quinn watches with narrowed eyes.