The Kindly One

XXI. Could Have Been

Iona's pulse hammered in her veins as she walked out into the green spaces in front of the Pharos. Their duel would be happening in the same place Nicol had once tested the half-elf. She knew that she'd grown a great deal under the older mage's tutelage, but she wasn't certain that would be enough to save her. Even if she did survive, she was worried that Kája would kill her for putting herself at this kind of risk. Nicol Kysely could inflict a great deal more pain than other mages.

"Ending it as it began, sweet thing?" Nicol said with a smile as she approached. They met on the lawn. The older mage's walk was more of a prowl. "Thou art a fool. The High Král will never honor any bargain struck with him. Thou hast shown him thou wilt give in if he digs his claws into a beloved thing of thine. He will have thee whenever and however he wants: body, soul, heart. He kens that thou wilt submit, even if thine hate is strong. 'Tis no matter—his interest doubles when they resist."

"It was my only choice," Iona said, ignoring the shivers down her spine at the thought of what awaited her. "What would you have done in my place?"

"I would have recognized that there is no way to save Benedikt Hustovi. I would have shielded mine eyes and hoped for something swift."

Iona shook her head. "I care about him. Maybe you don't remember what it is to care, but you had a heart once, Nicol. It's still in you somewhere, even if you don't listen to it."

Nicol laughed. "Aye? 'Tis thine flaw to see what thou dost wish to see, rather than what is. Thine trust comes to rest in the most unwise of places. And then there is thine nauseating attention to what thine spellguard tells thee to be right. 'Tis a high horse thou dost ride, Iona Velane. There is no place for principles in pursuit of power, and thou wilt learn that soon in thine quest for freedom."

"I'm not like you. I will never be like you."

Her mentor smiled. "Then wherefore dost thou have such a quaver in thine voice? 'Tis unmistakable: uncertainty. There is no escape from what thou art, from whom thou art meant to be. But enough has been said. Let us kill or die, proving which of us desires living more."

Iona nodded. She sensed Nicol's power flashing to life in a powerful manifestation and conjured her own ward with a mutter. Fire exploded in front of her face, shattering her ward and throwing the half-elf back.

"Too easy, sweet thing!" Nicol called as she readied her next spell and drew from the grass. It withered around her feet, brown and dead. "Make me work for it!"

Iona dug her fingers into the ground and let a surge of energy flood into the earth. It rippled like water, the quake knocking Nicol off her feet. The half-elf jumped up, grateful she hadn't neglected exercise. Kája was far faster and stronger, but Iona had an elf's grace and speed. Unfortunately, she also had the delicate build and constitution of her mother's kind. She caught the threads of a stone from beside Nicol and forced power into it. The rock shattered, shards ripping through Nicol's flesh.

Necrotic energy hit Iona like a tidal wave, trying to destroy her from within. She saw her veins turning dark in the back of her hands as it crept through her body. Iona felt sick and cold, at least until she pulled from the grass around her to restore her energy. That burned it away. Nicol was whispering something, weaving patterns in the air even as blood ran down her cheek and stained her clothes across her ribs and one thigh. She didn't seem to even feel the pain.

Iona heard a sudden buzzing in her ears and felt her limbs try to freeze. It was an enchantment worthy of an elf. She hadn't realized Nicol had that power. It meant the half-elf had to stop long enough to untangle her own threads, giving her mentor the opportunity to blast her with a searing wave of more cold and draining energy. Iona staggered back, knowing her skin had to be the color of ivory now. She sensed more than saw the growing crowd around them.