The Land Set Aflame

Chapter 87: The Bonds

Callyndia didn't bother to test the bonds on her wrists: she knew they'd be secure, and with so many enemies around her, she knew she wouldn't be able to get far even if she could slip free of them.

She was silently cursing herself that she hadn't anticipated that talisman, though. When worn by a human, it protected the wearer from fairy magic. When worn by a fairy, however, it seemed to block her ability to use magic at all. She'd tried a couple of times to extend magical tendrils out from herself to touch the minds around her, but no tendrils would form.

Worse, the lack of magic seemed to impact her very nature. She felt heavier, and her feet didn't glide lightly over the ground. She was struggling a bit on the rugged terrain, and her left hip was starting to ache. And without her magic, she couldn't keep her hair out of her eyes: she wished she'd had the foresight to put it back up in a braid again.

It surely couldn't be too hard to get the talisman off her neck, but she'd have to find a way to do it without letting Ilyssia see.

"I told you I didn't want you to be involved in this," Ilyssia said quietly, not looking in Callyndia's direction, "I don't want a conflict with your mother."

"And yet, you didn't make much effort to stop me," Callyndia said.

"It wasn't my decision to make," she responded.

"Wasn't it?" Callyndia said, "It's your ritual, is it not? Why shouldn't you get to choose?"

Ilyssia's face showed faint signs of irritation, but it didn't show through in her voice. "I'm reliant on him in all of this," she said, "So I'll do it his way."

Callyndia shrugged, still annoyed that she couldn't rely on magic to guide her through this conversation. "Well, I suppose I can't complain too loudly," she said, tossing her hair out of her face again, "I don't want you to kill Sven, after all."

"Abdus may kill him anyway, you know," Ilyssia said.

"I don't think he will," Callyndia said.

Ilyssia chuckled a little. "That's not why you negotiated a poor deal," she said.

Callyndia raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Abdus is too convinced of his own superiority," Ilyssia said, "He can't believe that a frivolous female fairy could ever be a match for him, intellectually or in terms of raw magical ability. That's why he thought he'd killed your mother, and it's also why he thought he won those negotiations back there. But I know better: you're far smarter than anyone gives you credit."

Callyndia's smile became hollow as she stared out in the distance. "Sometimes I think people actually give me too much credit," she replied.

"Perhaps," Ilyssia said, "But you did have a more nuanced plan than Abdus realized. You weren't there to get Svenden out: you were there to get me out, because you figured I was the biggest threat. Svenden, Leofric and Kithana can handle Abdus, but not me."

Callyndia pursed her lips. "I'm a mastermind, it seems," she said.

"No," Ilyssia said, "But you have faith in your friends, even though they don't have faith in themselves. And you didn't know I could block your magic entirely with my talisman."

"No, that was certainly a surprise for me," Callyndia admitted, "But, I do believe in Svenden. He's more capable, and more resilient, than you seem to think."

"He doesn't believe in himself," Ilyssia said, "He folds under pressure. He always did when he was with me. He'll do the same for you."

Callyndia grimaced and tossed her hair again, hoping it didn't seem too performative. "I think he'll make every effort for me," she said, "Because he truly is in love with me."

"Is it true love that motivates him?" Ilyssia asked, "Or that kiss you gave him?"

"Why can't it be both?" Callyndia asked.

Ilyssia shrugged. "Do you think he can tell the difference?" she asked, "Or is he still doubting?"

Callyndia smiled through the annoyance of this interrogation. "You're more talkative than usual," she commented casually, "It's nice, just us girls and our girl talk, isn't it?"

Ilyssia didn't seem to know what to do with that, and she lapsed into silence. Callyndia took the opportunity to reassess the situation, looking back over her shoulder in the direction of the ruins, no longer visible behind miles of rugged, mountainous terrain.

"We're almost there," Ilyssia said calmly after a while, "I'll try not to kill you, Princess; but I can't promise anything. And I will do whatever I must to make this work."

"Why do you need all of this?" Callyndia asked, "I'm not sure I understand what you're getting out of this?"

"Magic, of course," Ilyssia said simply.

"But you already have powerful shadow magic," Callyndia said, "I've felt it firsthand. Why do you need more?"

Ilyssia actually scoffed a bit at that. "Personal magic," she said, "Jumping between shadows and making swords of darkness doesn't really help the shadowfolk in this world that hates us."

"So, it's concern for your people that drives you?" Callyndia asked, "That's admirable. But you don't think there's another way to help them without this?"

"I wish there was something I could do for you, Princess," Ilyssia said, "But you won't talk me out of this. Stop trying." She nodded towards a cluster of ominous-looking trees. "We've arrived."