It didn't take long. Perhaps, despite the frenzied attack, enough of the spirits within were still aware of the horror and the blasphemy of what they'd done, slaying one of the goddess's chosen, and they seized on Ashyn's words as their last hope for redemption. They left and the shadow stalker weakened, and the rest either realized what they'd done or gave up. Soon the creature lay still, and Ashyn opened her eyes to see Ellyn's ruined body, her neck nearly bit through, the room sprayed with her blood.
Ashyn looked at Ellyn, and she didn't think of all the times the old woman made her feel like she'd never be a proper Seeker. She recalled the rare moments of kindness during their training, the moments of shared success, when Ashyn would perform a ritual exactly right, and she'd see a glow of pride in the old woman's eyes. Only a momentary glow, as if with every one of Ashyn's successes, Ellyn had seen her own power weakening.
It didn't need to be like that. It shouldn't have been like that. Any threat Ashyn posed to the old woman had not been Ashyn's fault. Only now did she realize that and felt, not anger but pity and grief for what they'd missed out on--a true bonding of mentor and student and, ultimately, of equals.
Ashyn turned to Thea, frozen on her pallet, staring at her twin.
"We need to--" Ashyn began.
A scream cut her short. A scream from deep in the courtyard--in the direction of the palace.
"Quickly!" Ashyn said. "I will tell you how to dispel them on the way."
"My sister . . ."
". . . is gone. Mourn her later. Honor her now. We'll find Moria and with the three of us, we can fix this."
The old woman looked up at Ashyn, her gaze blank.
"Please," Ashyn said. "We cannot wait."
"No," Thea said, her voice monotone. "You are right, Seeker. I cannot wait. My sister is gone."
She started to rise. Then her hand moved and Ronan shouted, "No!" and Ashyn saw the flash of the blade as Thea drove her dagger into her own gut.
FIFTY-FIVE
Moria and Tyrus were working their way toward the court, Tyrus shouting for others to take cover while Moria dispelled the shadow stalkers. She had to get to Ashyn. Yes, her sister could help, but more than that, Moria needed to know she was safe.
Moria had told Tyrus to go to his father and his mother, but he would not leave her side. He'd sent the children to warn his father--trusting that the shadow stalkers would still be under orders not to slay the young. His father would watch out for his mother, and there was little he could do that others could not. It was Moria's skill they needed. Hers and her sister's.
They were almost at the gate when a figure came running through it, braids swinging. Moria heard Gavril's exhalation of relief from ten paces away.
"You are both safe," he said as he ran to them. Daigo growled, and he said, "Yes, you, too. If you're running for Ashyn, she's not in her quarters. I was in the court when I saw one of the stalkers. I went straight for your chambers. No one is there."
"She was waiting there for Ronan," Moria said. "He must have come. Good. He'll watch over her, and she knows what to do. But we must find them."
"Your highness!" a voice called.
They turned to see a guard running toward them. All three stiffened and reached for their blades. So far, all the afflicted had been guards, and while this man had clearly not been turned, that did not mean the creature was not inside him, waiting to come forth as it had with the farm boy in the steppes.
"Keep your distance, Nao," Tyrus said.
The guard stopped short and nodded. "Yes, your highness. I understand. I will not come close, but I bring an urgent message. Your father has ordered everyone into the palace. He has secured it. Your mother is there, as well as your brothers."
"Go," Moria said. "I'll find Ashyn."
"I'll stay with Moria," Gavril said.
The guard shook his head. "The Seeker is already there. I'm to bring all of you. Quickly, please. The creatures are everywhere."
Moria nodded, and they broke into a run, following the guard.
"Where is Ashyn?" Moria said, striding through the main palace chamber. It was a vast room, seeming big enough to hold a hundred. Yet there were fewer than twenty people there, and clearly no girl with red-gold hair nor a giant yellow hound.
"She's not here," Moria said, as Gavril and Tyrus walked on either side of her, scanning the knots of people. "Blast it, she's not--"
Moria nearly collided with a court lady who stepped into her path. She was about to circle past when she stopped short. The woman was imperial-born, perhaps barely into her fourth decade, and more well-rounded than was the current fashion. What stopped Moria, though, was her face. She saw it, and she knew exactly who this was and bowed as deeply as she could manage, stammering, "L-lady Maiko. My apologies. I was--"