A while later, she startled awake. The fire next to her had burned out. She scrambled to her feet.
“Don’t worry,” Broomstick said from nearby. “I was awake about the time you fell asleep. It’s been quiet.”
“That makes me nervous,” Sora said as she stretched.
“Makes me nervous, too.” Broomstick rubbed his hands over his head. It was normally shaved, but now platinum fuzz was beginning to show.
Sora’s own hair had seen better days as well. It was limp and greasy against her face, and the white-blond roots had started to grow out while the black dye faded on the rest. Her tunic and trousers were in similar shape, mud-spattered and wrinkled, no longer the formidable black uniform taigas were used to wearing. She was pretty sure she smelled a bit like old cheese, too. Ugh.
At least the nap had done her some good. She still didn’t know how the four of them could save a kingdom, but she wasn’t drowning in utter despair anymore. The wheels in her brain creaked, eager to turn and come up with a plan.
But there was also something else. Sora finally understood Empress Aki’s imperial crest, the one with the crowned tiger and the words “Dignity. Benevolence. Loyalty.”
It was about giving yourself to something bigger.
Sora took a deep breath. What lay ahead of them was going to be the most difficult task they had ever faced. She had to be prepared.
“We should start brainstorming our next steps,” Sora said.
“I’ll wake Fairy and Wolf.” Broomstick rose and headed to the back of the hall.
A few seconds later, he yelped.
Fear rose like an alarm in Sora’s chest as she sprinted to help him. Were they being attacked?
When she reached Broomstick, though, it was apparent he didn’t need help. At least, not in the way Sora had imagined.
Fairy was still next to Daemon, but he wasn’t a furry, electric-blue wolf anymore. He was six feet two inches of stark-naked, tautly muscled boy on a bed of tablecloths. The only hint of his wolfishness was his hair, which had lost its black taiga dye in his transformation and was now its natural midnight blue.
Sora’s jaw dropped, her pulse beating traitorously at double time.
“Good gods, you two!” Broomstick said. “I don’t normally care what you do on your own time, but here? When Spirit and I were twenty yards away?”
Both Fairy and Daemon seemed just as shocked as Broomstick and Sora, though. Daemon curled up into a ball and desperately heaped tablecloths on himself to cover up. Fairy had sprung to her feet and leaped away from him, her eyes wide.
“It’s n-not . . . ,” she said. “We didn’t . . .”
“When did I turn back into a human?” Daemon asked, curling more tightly into himself.
The four of them stood frozen for another moment, brains trying to catch up with the scene before them.
Suddenly, Broomstick snorted. “You had no idea he was naked, did you?” he said to Fairy.
“None.” She shook her head to emphasize the point.
The real evidence, though, was the hot rush of Daemon’s embarrassment through his and Sora’s gemina bond. He was absolutely mortified.
“Oh, Daemon.” Sora summoned her cloak from the other side of the room. It flew swiftly to him, and he yanked it to his body. Her poor gemina. He was possibly a demigod, but he was also still the boy she knew, self-conscious and uncertain in his magic. They didn’t know the extent of his powers or how to control them, and this surprise was an unfortunate result.
“We’ll find an extra set of clothes for you in the councilmembers’ rooms,” Sora said. “You can join us when you’re, uh, ready.”
“Thanks,” Daemon said, his embarrassment still burning through their bond.
Sora began to walk away, with Fairy and Broomstick right behind her. She almost expected a joke from one of them, Broomstick especially, about how teasing Fairy and Daemon was part of his sacred duty as a best friend.
But there wasn’t a single word. Their usual lighthearted banter was gone, as if the weight of Prince Gin’s fledgling reign was already taking its toll.
Everything had changed.
Chapter Four
Sora sat cross-legged on the floor and nibbled on a piece of fish jerky. Broomstick restrained himself and ate only half a package of rice crackers, saving some for the others. It was all they could find in the pantry, since most of the food left behind after the ryuu’s attack had already spoiled. Fairy scrunched her nose as she took a piece of jerky. “I miss sweet red beans and pancakes from the mess hall.”
Broomstick nodded. “And pork sausages and fried eggs and steamed rice with breakfast pickles.”
“Rose-apple jam and buttery rolls,” Fairy said.
“Forest mushroom tarts and seaweed scrambles,” Broomstick added.
Sora’s stomach rumbled. Of the four of them, she was the one who usually waxed poetic about food.
Daemon walked toward them, fully dressed now, and dropped beside Sora with a heavy sigh. He folded his long legs beneath him.
Everyone shifted awkwardly, as if the noise of their shuffling would spare them from having to talk about the earlier incident.
Broomstick was the first to speak. “Stale cracker?” He held out the package.
Daemon shook his head and sighed again. The sensation dribbled through Sora’s gemina bond, a mixture of frustration and resignation, like soggy autumn leaves being trampled in the mud.
“I didn’t mind being an electric wolf in the middle of battle,” he said, “but gods dammit. I’d really like to get a handle on what these powers are and how to control them so I can avoid . . . well, you know.”
Sora reached over and patted his knee. “We’ll figure it out. I promise.”
“Yeah,” Daemon said without much conviction.
“You should really eat something,” she said, taking the rice crackers from Broomstick and pressing them into Daemon’s hand. “Everything seems worse when you’re hungry. At least that’s true for me. But don’t worry, the four of us will work this out.” She managed to dig up a smile for his sake.
“And I’m sure Spirit has already thought of a plan,” Fairy piped up. “She’s always got something up her sleeve. Right?”
Sora worried her lip. “Well, sort of. We obviously need to destroy Prince Gin. If we can kill him, we cut the head off the dragon, and the body can’t function without him. No one else can control minds like he can. Without a leader, maybe the ryuu will fall apart. Plus, that will free the taigas from his hypnosis.
“We also need to figure out if Empress Aki is still alive. If she is, we’ll have to rescue her.”
Daemon let out a scoff of a laugh.
“What?” Sora said.
“That’s too much to expect of us.” He sat hunched over, looking smaller than usual. “We can’t do it.”
“I admit I’ve thought that, too,” Fairy said. “But we don’t have a choice. We have to save Kichona.”
“Are you listening to yourselves?” Daemon asked. “There are only four of us. Prince Gin has an entire army with superior magic. He hypnotized two hundred people—civilians—to murder themselves. And he captured the empress. Don’t you see? We’ve already lost.”